FINRA suspended former ING Financial Partners, Inc. broker Frank John Tarazon of Oxnard, California and fined him $20,000 for borrowing several hundred-thousand dollars from an elderly customer while serving as a successor trustee and beneficiary to the customer's trust in contravention of firm policy. FINRA also found that Tarazon made false statements to his supervisor and on questionnaires regarding this relationship.
According to the findings, in 2007 Tarazon and a 75-year-old woman entered into a broker-client relationship; at some point after their meeting, Tarazon accepted the role of successor trustee and beneficiary to the customer's trust, though Tarazon allegedly stated to a supervisor and on multiple annual questionnaires that he had not been named as a trustee or beneficiary of a customer's trust.
At the time, ING prohibited registered representatives from being named beneficiary or trustee on customer accounts. Similarly, firm policy prohibited representatives from borrowing money from clients without prior written permission from the firm. The investigation states that Tarazon never informed ING about the borrowing activity and never attempted to secure permission to engage in accepting loans.
FINRA discovered that Tarazon borrowed a total of $368,692 from his elderly customer over a three-year period.
After a firm investigation uncovered Tarazon's misconduct, ING filed a Form U5 stating Tarazon was terminated for violating firm policy by borrowing money from a customer and failing to disclose it to the firm.
If you have invested with Frank John Tarazon or with any other broker who has borrowed money from you or become beneficiary to a trust in violation of firm policy or FINRA rules, and such misconduct has proven harmful to your investments or interests, please call The Law Offices of Jonathan W. Evans & Associates at (800) 699-1881 for an investigation and consultation.