Financial Advisor Thomas Laws Reportedly Pleads Guilty to Fraud

Broker Thomas Laws, HD Vest Advisor

Have you suffered losses investing with former financial advisor Thomas Laws? If so, the securities attorneys at The White Law Group may be able to help you to recover your losses.

Thomas Laws, a licensed accountant and investment advisor,  reportedly pleaded guilty to four counts of wire fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft in federal court last week after he was accused of allegedly stealing $1.5 million from his clients, according to reports on April 8..

Between 2008 and 2019, Laws of Silver City, NM, purportedly lied to two clients in order to convince them to invest in a real estate development project.

He allegedly faked and forged mortgage documents purporting to show that $650,000 these clients invested in the project was secured by a mortgage

Instead, Laws had purportedly mortgaged the property to other lenders, defaulted, and a court had ordered foreclosure and judicial sale of the property, the justice department stated. Rather than developing the real estate, Laws used the $650,000 to pay part of a settlement with an earlier victim of his alleged scheme.

Laws also purportedly scammed two other investors out of $550,000 that Laws claimed would be used for a mining project, according to the Department of Justice. Laws reportedly used the money to pay off earlier victims of his scheme, including partial restitution to the Sante Fe Gold Corporation from which he, as the corporation’s chief executive officer, had purportedly embezzled more than $1 million.

FINRA reportedly barred Laws last April after an investigation into whether Laws potentially violated FINRA rules by engaging in undisclosed outside business activities and/or private securities transactions while associated with HD Vest.

According to his FINRA BrokerCheck Report, Laws was registered with HD Vest in Silver City, NM for 11 years. Laws reportedly has 5 disclosure events on his broker report, including 2 pending customer complaints. Allegations include fraudulent investments and misappropriation of funds.

The White Law Group is investigating the liability that Laws’ employers may have for failure to properly supervise him.

Brokerage firms are required to properly supervise their advisors. They must ensure that those advisors are complying with applicable FINRA rules and regulations. If it can be demonstrated that Laws’ former employers failed to properly supervise him, the firm may be held responsible for the losses in a FINRA arbitration claim.

Free Consultation with a Securities Attorney

If you are concerned about your investments with Thomas Laws and would like a free consultation to discuss your litigation options, please call The White Law Group at 1-888-637-5510.

The White Law Group, LLC is a national securities fraud, securities arbitration, investor protection, and securities regulation/compliance law firm with offices in Chicago, Illinois and Franklin, Tennessee.

For more information on The White Law Group, visit WhiteSecuritiesLaw.com.