Former Bank of America Merrill Lynch broker, James R. Lanier of Tallahassee, Florida, pleaded guilty to 22 counts of fraud and related charges last November. He was sentenced to 8 years and 10 months in federal prison, and ordered to pay $887,931 in restitution. Also, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) banned him from the securities industry. Lanier forged his clients' signatures on letters authorizing wire transfers from their accounts to his.
Mr. Lanier illegally used approximately $1 million in client funds to invest in a cellular telecommunications business, and purchased, among other things, a condominium and pickup truck.
“Lanier's unlawful conduct was recurring and egregious,” SEC Administrative Law Judge Carol Fox Foelak wrote in a decision filed on Tuesday that was not contested by Mr. Lanier. “Extending over a period of several years, it involved hundreds of thousands of dollars.”
Bank of America Corp., which owns Merrill Lynch, said the company has already reimbursed the victims and that the bank is owed the restitution amount. Bank of America learned that the money was misappropriated in March, 2010, and notified authorities. James Lanier was employed by Merrill Lynch from September 2008 until March 2010.
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