SEC Freezes Assets of Aubrey Lee Price for Florida, Georgia Scam
A $40 million investment fraud by Aubrey Lee Price targeting Florida and Georgia investors has resulted in a court order freezing the assets of the Georgia-based investment adviser, who has apparently gone into hiding.
The SEC alleges that Aubrey Lee Price raised money from more than 100 investors living primarily in Georgia and Florida by selling shares in an unregistered investment fund (PFG) that he managed. Price purported to invest fund assets in traditional marketable securities, but he also made illiquid investments in South America real estate and a troubled South Georgia bank.
In order to conceal mounting losses of investor funds, Price created bogus account statements with false account balances and returns that were provided to investors and bank regulators.
According to the SEC’s complaint filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Price is believed to be a resident of Lowndes County in Georgia after moving from Manatee County, Florida.
The SEC alleges that Price began his scheme in 2008. According to PFG’s private placement memorandum, the investment objective was to achieve “positive total returns with low volatility” by investing in a variety of opportunities, including equity securities traded on the U.S. markets.
A significant portion of PFG investor funds – approximately $36.9 million – was placed in a securities trading account at a broker-dealer. The trading account suffered massive trading losses and money was frequently wire-transferred to PFG’s operating bank account. Throughout the time during which PFG suffered trading losses, client account statements prepared by Price were made available to investors indicating fictitious amounts of assets and investment returns.
According to the SEC’s complaint, Price has sent a letter to some individuals dated June 2012 and titled “Confidential Confession For Regulators – PFG, LLC and PFGBI, LLC Summary.” In the 22-page letter, Price admits that he “falsified statements with false returns” in order to conceal between $20 million and $23 million in investor losses.
The SEC’s complaint charged Price and his related companies, PFG, LLC; PFGBI, LLC; Montgomery Asset Management, LLC (Florida); and Montgomery Asset Management, LLC (Georgia) with violations of Section 10(b) and of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and further charged Price and Montgomery Asset Management, LLC (Florida) with violations of Sections 206(1), (2) and (4) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and Rule 206(4)-8 thereunder.
The Honorable Timothy C. Batten, Sr. granted the SEC’s request for a temporary restraining order and entered an asset freeze for the benefit of investors against Price, PFG, and his affiliated entities. Judge Batten has scheduled a court hearing on July 13, 2012 for the SEC’s motion for a preliminary injunction.
Anyone with information about Price’s whereabouts should contact the Atlanta office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation at 404-679-9000 or the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office at 229-671-2985. [SEC v. Aubrey Lee Price, et al. Case No. 1:12-CV-2296 (N.D. Ga.)] (LR-22409)
Fort Lauderdale Securities Litigation Attorney and FINRA Arbitrator
Contact Fort Lauderdale securities litigation attorney Howard N. Kahn, Esq. if you or someone you know has a securities dispute. In addition to being an experienced securities litigation attorney, Mr. Kahn also serves as a FINRA arbitrator for individual investors, brokers, and brokerage firms. You can reach him at 954-321-0176 or online.