FINRA barred former JPMorgan broker-dealer affiliate CISC registered representative, Theresa I. Reyes, of San Diego, CA, for allegedly repeatedly using her capacity as a JPMorgan personal banker in order to engage in unauthorized activity in a customer's business credit card account without that customer's knowledge or consent.
Disciplinary Proceeding #2011030672401
According to the findings, during Reyes' two-plus months of willful misconduct, she arranged for her husband to be added as an authorized user on the customer's credit card account, requested that a credit card be issued on the account in the name of her husband, requested a credit line increase for that same credit card account and set up an online credit card account profile and enrolled in JPMorgan's online payment service where she subsequently made a payment to the credit card account.
The investigation states that approximately two months after the misconduct began, the card in Reyes' husband's name was declined because JPMorgan had removed her husband from the account. According to the findings, the customer had contacted JPMorgan directly to request the husband's removal.
FINRA found that even though the husband was removed from the account at the direction of the true accountholder, Reyes nonetheless again arranged for her husband to be added back as an authorized user and again requested that a credit card be issued in his name.
Investigators found that Reyes and her husband improperly used those credit cards over 200 times during those two-plus months, racking up personal charges totaling $15,277.35. None of these charges were authorized by the actual accountholder.
FINRA initially charged Reyes with improper conversion—by repeatedly performing unauthorized actions in a customer's credit card account, Reyes was able to misappropriate over $15,000, none of it known to the customer at the time.
When Reyes failed to appear for an on-the-record testimony related to this investigation as scheduled, FINRA attempted to reschedule a hearing.
When Reyes failed to appear on the second scheduled date, FINRA reconsidered the evidence and concluded that the appropriate sanction for Reyes' misconduct shall be permanent banishment from the securities industry.
If you have invested with Theresa I. Reyes, or with any broker, banker or firm that has engaged in unauthorized activity in any of your investment or banking accounts and such misconduct has proven harmful to your interests, please call The Law Offices of Jonathan W. Evans & Associates at (800) 699-1881 for an investigation and consultation.