The SEC filed a complaint in United States District Court for the District of Northern Utah alleging that the late broker Stephen Romney Swensen defrauded more than 50 investors of nearly $30 million through investments in Crew Capital Group, a company owned by Swensen that invested no money in securities.
The SEC named Wendy Swensen, Saria C Rodriguez, WS Family IP, Wingman LLC, and Swensen Capital as relief defendants. The complaint alleges that Wendy Swensen, Saria Rodriguez, and the various companies received proceeds from Stephen Swensen's fraudulent activity. For instance, Swensen allegedly siphoned investor funds directly to Wingman LLC, resulting in significant investor losses as the money effectively vanished from their view.
According to the complaint, Stephen Swensen (CRD #2885578) up until his death in June 2022, and while registered with Summit Brokerage Service, Allegis Investment Services, and JW Cole Financial at various times during the decade-long fraudulent scheme, made false statements to investors to solicit investments in Crew Capital Group, misrepresenting Crew Capital as a safe investment fund paying a guaranteed 5-10% annual return.
In June 2022, Wealth Navigation Advisors formally discharged Swensen for failing to disclose an "outside business activity."
According to the SEC, the securities laws violations persist at Crew Capital to the present day, despite Swensen's death, by disseminating misleading and false statements to investors, a practice of publishing fictitious information that purportedly began at the hands of Swensen.
The SEC described Swensen and Crew Capital's business as operating in Ponzi-like fashion, using most investor moneys for personal expenses such as airplanes and living expenses of the Swensen family, while diverting certain other client funds to make periodic payments of fake earnings to earlier investors.
If you invested with Stephen Romney Swensen of Utah in the Ponzi-like Crew Capital Group and have suffered losses as a result of this fraud after being enticed with false promises and guarantees of a 5% minimum annual return that never materialized, please call an experienced FINRA arbitration attorney at The Law Offices of Jonathan W. Evans & Associates at (800) 699-1881 for an investigation and consultation.