Former Raymond James Broker, Frederick Stow, Barred By FINRA For Allegedly Stealing $1 Million From Elderly Clients

Frederick Stow (CRD # 864436 ) was a Financial Advisor at Raymond James & Associates, Inc. in Franklin, TN. Frederick Stow has been in the securities industry since 1979 and previously worked at Wells Fargo Advisors, LLC and Suntrust Investment Services, Inc.

According to publicly available records released by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), in October 2019, FINRA sanctioned Frederick Stow, barring him from acting as a broker or associating with a broker-dealer.

According to the FINRA sanction, “Pursuant to FINRA Rule 9552(h) and in accordance with FINRA’s Notice of Suspension and Suspension from Association letters dated October 18, 2019 and November 12, 2019, respectively, on January 21, 2020, Stow is barred from association with any FINRA member in all capacities. Respondent failed to request termination of his suspension within three months of the date of the Notice of Suspension; therefore, he is automatically barred from association with any FINRA member in all capacities.”

In addition, on June 11, 2020 the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a civil suit against Frederick Stow alleging the following: “This case concerns the systematic theft of two elderly brokerage customers’ funds by their registered representative over the course of more than three years. Stow sold securities from the individual retirement account (“IRA”) of Customer A. Stow then forged wire transfer letters of authorization to transfer the proceeds of the securities sales to his own bank account without Customer A’s knowledge or consent. Within weeks after Customer A passed away at the age of 98, which resulted in the account being frozen, Stow began misappropriating funds from Customer B, another elderly customer. After repeated requests from Customer A’s executor for an explanation of the wire transfers, Stow confessed to his supervisor that he had stolen money from Customer A’s accounts. In total, Stow misappropriated $943,500 from the two customers. By engaging in the foregoing conduct, Defendant Stow violated, and unless enjoined, will continue to violate Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act and Rule 10b-5 thereunder.”
Elder financial abuse is a growing trend in the financial serviced industry due to the aging baby boomer population. It is estimated that by 2030, baby boomers will control nearly $26 trillion in assets, which inherently creates opportunity for misconduct. The federal government and states have enacted enhanced legislation to address this issue but there is still a lot of work to be done.
In May 2019 Frederick Stow was discharged from Raymond James & Associates for “misappropriating funds from customer accounts.”

In addition, Frederick Stow is the subject of a customer complaint alleging that the “FA misappropriated funds from a client’s account. Activity Dates 9/13- 5/19.” The alleged damages are $911,500 and the matter remains pending.

For a copy of Frederick Stow’s CRD, click https://brokercheck.finra.org/individual/summary/864436#disclosuresSection

Financial advisors have a legal and regulatory obligation to recommend only suitable investments that are appropriate for their clients’ needs and objectives. Their employing brokerage firm has a legal and regulatory obligation to supervise the Financial Advisors’ sales practices and dealings with clients. To the extent any of these duties are breached, the customer may be entitled to a recovery of his or her investment losses.

The Wolper Law Firm represents investors nationwide in securities litigation and arbitration on a contingency fee basis. Matt Wolper, the Managing Principal of the Wolper Law Firm, is a trial lawyer who has handled hundreds of securities cases during his career involving a wide range of products, strategies and securities. Prior to representing investors, he was a partner with a national law firm, where he represented some of the largest banks and brokerage firms in the world in securities matters. We can be reached at 800.931.8452 or by email at mwolper@wolperlawfirm.com.