KlaymanToskes investigates Wells Fargo Representatives with significant disclosures in predictive FINRA analysis. FINRA (Financial Industry Regulatory Authority) is the self-regulatory organization responsible for regulating all brokers and brokerage firms doing business with the U.S public. FINRA’s public database, known as BrokerCheck, is a free tool for investors seeking information about their advisors and brokerage firms. Through BrokerCheck, investors can access their advisor’s public disclosure history including pending and settled customer complaints, regulatory actions, judgements and liens, personal bankruptcies, and criminal history.
Over one million individual FINRA records of current and former Wells Fargo representatives were analyzed in this report. Many of the individuals listed have multiple customer complaints including settlements in favor of investors. Others have been previously discharged or terminated for misconduct and/or hired despite significant disclosure history.
According to national investment fraud attorney Lawrence L. Klayman, Esq., “KlaymanToskes seeks to help the investing public by informing them of financial professionals who are statistically more likely to receive public disclosures and/or be involved in customer disputes. Investors who have faced investment losses are encouraged to contact us at 888-997-9956 or lklayman@klaymantoskes.com to discuss their recovery options.”
The following list contains currently registered Wells Fargo representatives with significant FINRA public disclosures, according to their BrokerCheck reports. KlaymanToskes’ analysis of FINRA records identifies these individuals as being potentially more likely to receive future disclosures and/or customer complaints.
| Name | CRD #
(Linked BrokerCheck) |
Location/Branch | Disclosure History |
| Evan R. Wuhl | 867812 | Paramus, NJ | 16 customer complaints; 12 settled;
Resigned from UBS following alleged firm policy violation |
| Jeff A. Eiler | 1028716 | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 12 customer complaints; 8 settled;
1 criminal disclosure |
| Thomas Mcintyre Jr. | 328488 | Danbury, CT | 11 customer complaints; 9 settled |
| John E. Draper | 839434 | Irvine, CA | 11 customer complaints; 5 settled |
| Bruce H. Galpert | 1288182 | Santa Fe, NM | 10 customer complaints; 6 settled |
| Michael J. Cifelli | 1276418 | Philadelphia, PA | 10 customer complaints; 5 settled |
| George F. Dance Jr. | 2112036 | Biloxi, MS | 10 customer complaints; 4 settled |
| William H. Basler | 1310243 | Fort Myers, FL | 9 customer complaints; 7 settled |
| Christopher Fontana | 2285706 | Naples, FL | 9 customer complaints; 4 settled |
| Christopher Cochrane | 2121318 | Appleton, WI | 8 customer complaints; 7 settled |
| David B. White | 2391143 | South Lake, TX | 8 customer complaints; 6 settled |
| Pasquale Capone | 2487767 | Woodbury, NY | 8 customer complaints; 6 settled |
| Mary A. Hansenfaris | 1076543 | Palm Desert, CA | 8 customer complaints; 5 settled;
1 award |
| Richard J. Bernstein | 1113777 | Incline Village, NV | 8 customer complaints; 4 settled;
2 awards |
| Jennifer L. Garcia | 2266576 | Encino, CA | 8 customer complaints; 4 settled |
| Robert E. Barnard | 1101523 | Park City, UT | 7 customer complaints; 7 settled |
| Linda E. Lynch | 716063 | Melville, NY | 7 customer complaints; 7 settled |
| Mark G. Schlig | 2975568 | Rolling Hills Estates, CA | 7 customer complaints; 6 settled;
Discharged from Painewebber following customer complaints |
| David J. Nelson | 718785 | Woodbury, NY | 7 customer complaints; 6 settled |
| William D. Link Jr. | 865079 | Edmond, OK | 7 customer complaints; 5 settled;
2 awards; Discharged from PB |
| Gail Mackler-Carlino | 1340615 | Northfield, NJ | 7 customer complaints; 5 settled;
1 regulatory suspension and fine |
| Kenneth M. Harb | 502814 | Farmington Hills, MI | 7 customer complaints; 5 settled;
1 award |
| Steven L. Wetzel | 1490148 | Birmingham, AL | 7 customer complaints; 5 settled |
| Steven Andrew Hill | 4606358 | Atwater, CA | 7 customer complaints; 4 settled;
Discharged from Wamu following alleged firm policy violation |
| James J. Murphy | 1024330 | Woodbury, NY | 7 customer complaints; 4 settled;
2 awards |
| Dominic J. Guido | 231738 | New York, NY | 7 customer complaints; 4 settled;
1 award |
| Bruce A. Rudenberg | 809162 | Miami, FL | 7 customer complaints; 4 settled;
1 award |
| Leif D. Olson | 2277495 | Sarasota, FL | 7 customer complaints; 4 settled |
| Todd S. Schmucker | 1575955 | Salt Lake City, UT | 7 customer complaints; 3 settled
1 award |
| Andrew J. Harmer | 724175 | Chester, PA | 7 customer complaints; 2 settled;
1 award; 1 civil judgment/lien |
| Stephen A. Freidin | 1547945 | Lake Forest, IL | 7 customer complaints; 2 settled |
| Glenn J. Fama | 1614526 | San Francisco, CA | 6 customer complaints; 5 settled;
1 award |
| Michael J. Peters | 2408980 | San Francisco, CA | 6 customer complaints; 5 settled |
| Alan S. Durlester | 1009194 | Woodland Hills, CA | 6 customer complaints; 4 settled;
1 award; 1 regulatory order |
| Barry P. Sullivan | 705614 | Rochester, NY | 6 customer complaints; 4 settled |
| Kevin P. Fay | 2144853 | Fairfield, NJ | 6 customer complaints; 3 settled;
1 pending; Discharged from Morgan Stanley following alleged firm policy violation |
| Curtis L. Rach | 2202176 | Irvine, CA | 6 customer complaints; 3 settled |
| Ryan G. Robinson | 2682661 | Encino, CA | 6 customer complaints; 2 settled;
1 regulatory suspension and fine |
| James R. Pringle | 1277121 | Indian Harbour, FL | 6 customer complaints; 2 settled;
1 regulatory fine |
| Jeffrey L. Burton | 2366552 | Charleston, SC | 5 customer complaints; 5 settled;
Resigned from Merrill Lynch following alleged policy violation |
| Nicholas A. Boccella | 860147 | Chatham, NJ | 5 customer complaints; 4 settled;
1 award; 1 regulatory censure |
| Anne L. Davidson | 728189 | Dallas, Texas | 5 customer complaints; 2 settled;
2 awards; 1 regulatory fine; Discharged from Sherson Lehman following alleged policy violation |
| Thomas A. Braley | 1264896 | Saginaw, MI | 5 customer complaints; 2 settled;
3 civil judgements/liens |
| Brian C. Keach | 3000286 | Roswell, GA | 5 customer complaints; 2 settled;
1 regulatory fine |
| William Turnbough | 867704 | Frontenac, MO | 4 customer complaints; 4 settled;
1 regulatory fine |
| Joseph A. Vieira | 1410092 | Coral Springs, FL | 4 customer complaints; 3 settled |
| Stuart C. Barth | 1600781 | Gaithersburg, MD | 3 customer complaints; 3 settled
6 tax judgements/liens |
| Steven F. O’Brein | 1024861 | Oak Brook, IL | 3 customer complaints; 3 settled;
4 tax judgements/liens |
The following list contains currently registered Wells Fargo representatives that were hired in 2022 despite significant FINRA public disclosures, according to their BrokerCheck reports. KlaymanToskes’ analysis of FINRA records identifies these individuals as being potentially more likely to receive future disclosures and/or customer complaints.
| Name
& CRD # (Linked BrokerCheck) |
Location | Date Hired
By Wells Fargo |
Previous
Firm |
Disclosure History |
| Jerome Vandemotter | Pepper Pike, OH | 11/28/2022 | UBS Financial | 3 customer complaints; 2 settled |
| Brian E. Graber | Marietta, GA | 11/22/2022 | Merrill Lynch | 2 customer complaints; 1 settled |
| Howard A. Lee | Westlake Village, CA | 11/16/2022 | Morgan Stanley | 3 customer complaints; 2 settled |
| Evan M. Savarick | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 09/22/2022 | Morgan Stanley | 2 customer complaints; 1 settled |
| Roy H. Savarick | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 09/22/2022 | Morgan Stanley | 4 customer complaints; 1 settled;
2 awards |
| Christopher E. Coghlan | Corte Madera, CA | 09/16/2022 | Morgan Stanley | 5 customer complaints; 2 settled |
| David V. Roy | McLean, VA | 08/02/2022 | UBS Financial | 2 customer complaints; 2 settled |
| Andrew Tempelis | Seattle, WA | 07/21/2022 | Merrill Lynch | 2 customer complaints; 1 settled |
| David M. Ferman | New York, NY | 07/11/2022 | Morgan Stanley | 5 customer complaints; 1 settled;
1 award |
| Allen P. Lovejoy | Old Greenwich, CT | 07/07/2022 | Merrill Lynch | 3 customer complaints; 1 settled |
| Jeffrey Roumfort | Houston, TX | 05/19/2022 | Merrill Lynch | 3 customer complaints; 1 award |
| Mark J. Morena | Canton, OH | 05/17/2022 | Morgan Stanley | 2 customer complaints; 2 settled |
| Bryan J. Schon | Birmingham, MI | 04/28/2022 | Morgan Stanley | 5 customer complaints; 2 settled |
| Michael J. Dymkowski | Bloomfield Hills, MI | 04/28/2022 | Morgan Stanley | 4 customer complaints; 3 settled |
| Michael A. Margiotta | Beverly Hills, CA | 04/21/2022 | Merrill Lynch | 3 customer complaints; 2 settled |
| Richard D. Gurchak | Farmington Hills, MI | 01/13/2022 | Morgan Stanley | 2 customer complaints; 1 settled |
The following list contains previously registered Wells Fargo representatives that were either discharged or resigned in 2022 following some allegation(s) of wrongdoing. KlaymanToskes’ analysis of FINRA records identifies the individuals’ alleged departure explanations provided to FINRA by Wells Fargo and the individual’s date of departure, current status and firm/location.
| Name
& CRD # (Linked BrokerCheck) |
Location | New
Firm |
Date | Type | Departure Explanation
From Wells Fargo |
| Kyle W. Bouman | St. Louis, MO | Not
Registered |
11/17/2022 | Discharged | Discharged after an internal review determined that he placed certain unnecessary phone calls from his work phone that increased metrics used to determine his quarterly bonus potential. |
| Mandisa R. Landry | Charlotte, NC | Not
Registered |
11/17/2022 | Discharged | Discharged after bank investigation revealed that employee failed to follow customer referral process, improperly claiming credit for a customer referral. |
| Colleena F. Snider | Des Moines, IA | Not
Registered |
11/09/2022 | Discharged | Employee was terminated after admitting during bank investigation that she used cut and paste method to add customer signature to a bank document. |
| Christy M. Rodriguez | Whittier, CA | U.S Bancorp. Investments | 10/13/2022 | Discharged | Discharged after advisor admitted during investigation to entering trade in customer account based upon voicemail from customer without confirming trade request with customer prior to entry of trade. |
| Michael S. Batmanian | Los Angeles, CA | Not
Registered |
09/29/2022 | Discharged | Discharged by bank for failure to meet risk evaluation expectations with regard to opening new bank account and subsequent fraud loss. |
| Raul Hernandez | Tempe, AZ | Bancwest
Investment Services |
09/07/2022 | Discharged | Terminated by Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. after admitting that he did not count cash funds in an envelope. The activity at issue did not relate to securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
| John Barry Clemens | Cleveland, OH | RBC Capital Markets
Westlake, OH |
09/01/2022 | Resignation | Voluntarily resigned following allegations that he accepted trading instructions from a third party who was not authorized to give instructions on the account and for noting in an electronic record that he had spoken to the client when he had not. No client harm identified. |
| Iesha T. Southern | The Woodlands, TX | Not
Registered |
09/01/2022 | Discharged | Discharged after allegations that when CA was a banker at Wells Fargo Bank (the “Bank”) she removed a beneficial owner who failed the required Business Risk Screening from a Bank business account. The CA also allegedly, without supporting documentation, changed the ownership of the business reflected in the Bank’s system from 50% to 0% for the removed owner and from 50% to 100% for the other owner. The activity was unrelated to the securities business of WFCS. |
| Michael J. Kazacos | Fairport, NY | Stifel, Nicolaus & Co. | 08/31/2022 | Discharged | Discharged after placing trades in a client account without getting prior client authorization and for noting in an electronic record that he had spoken to the client when he had not. |
| Anthony A. Morrison | Memphis, TN | Stifel, Nicolaus & Co. | 08/30/2022 | Discharged | During the course of an internal investigation financial advisor admitted using discretion to trade in family’s trust account and advisor was then discharged. |
| Christopher J. Heckenkamp | Long Beach, CA | LPL Financial
Rancho Palos Verdes, CA |
08/17/2022 | Discharged | Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network, LLC elected not to continue RR’s registration after RR did not call client for confirmation after receiving email instructions for wire transfers. The instructions were later determined to be fraudulent. |
| Eugene W. Neal II | Daytona Beach, FL | Not
Registered |
08/05/2022 | Discharged | Discharged after he deposited a check he wrote drawn from an account with insufficient funds. He then depleted the funds from second account. Check was returned, leaving account with a negative balance. Separately, RB disputed an ATM withdrawal & was provided temporary credit. RB transferred funds out of account the same day. Claim was denied & temporary credit reversed, leaving a negative balance in account. Not related to securities business of WFCS LLC. |
| Genci Abdula | Pompton Plains, NJ | Not
Registered |
08/04/2022 | Discharged | Employment terminated after bank investigation revealed that employee provided manager transaction approval which resulted in financial loss to the bank. No related customer loss and or financial gain to the terminated employee. |
| John L. Ranft | Exton, PA | TD Private Client Wealth | 08/02/2022 | Discharged | Terminated by Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (WFBNA) following allegations that he accessed his own WFBNA account and the WFBNA accounts of two family members through WFBNA’s service platform on multiple occasions without an apparent business need. No transactions took place in the accounts nor was any account maintenance performed as a result of this access. The activity was unrelated to the securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
| Salvatore J. Ruffino | New York, NY | Merrill Lynch | 07/25/2022 | Discharged | Terminated by Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. (“WFBNA”) following allegations that he borrowed money from a WFBNA colleague. The allegations are unrelated to the securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
| Alison D. Mortarotti | Park City, UT | Not
Registered |
07/18/2022 | Discharged | Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. discharged banker after allegations that banker selected Personal Identification Number for business bank account when bank customer was not present and used PIN to authenticate change of name bank account form. This activity was not related to the securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
| Mohamed I. Azeez | Hollywood, FL | Not
Registered |
06/22/2022 | Discharged | Registered banker’s employment terminated after bank investigation revealed that banker opened business bank account after one of two business owners listed on account application was removed as business owner from account application, by banker, after failing risk screening. Not related to the securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
| Eric D. Hogan | Centennial, CO | Not Registered | 06/21/2022 | Discharged | Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., discharged the registered banker after the banker removed a beneficial owner who failed the business risk screen from a business account prior to opening the account. The banker also failed to collect a copy of business documents to support the change in beneficial ownership. This activity was not related to the securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
| Sevag Haddadian | Brea, CA | Barred from association with any FINRA member in all capacities
on 01/23/2023 |
06/15/2022 | Discharged | An internal review determined that the registered representative failed to timely disclose his involvement with a LLC that acquired and rented real estate. |
| Mark V. Forktus | Newtown, PA | Prospera Financial
Services |
06/01/2022 | Discharged | In a telephone call with another firm, RR represented himself as the client in order to extend the client’s annuity commencement date. In a separate phone call to that firm, RR identified himself as a different client in order to obtain information for the client about an annuity for which he wasn’t the agent of record. |
| Kari L. Brown | Lakeland, FL | Not
Registered |
06/01/2022 | Discharged | WFBNA discharged the registered banker after investigating 11 fraud claims the banker filed between 2/18/21 and 3/25/22 against transactions on her Wells Fargo account. The bank investigation determined that the transactions were not fraudulent. This activity was not related to the securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
| Joseph Starnes | Lavista, NE | Securities America | 05/25/2022 | Discharged | Relationship Banker Joseph Starnes was terminated by Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. following allegations that he accepted an unendorsed check for deposit. The allegations are unrelated to the securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
| Gregory W. Prime | New York, NY | Berenberg Capital Markets | 05/23/2022 | Discharged | Mr. Prime told a group of employees to delete certain business-related communications, though an internal review found no indication the employees did so. |
| Alice J. Brattain Shagley | Terra Haute, IN | Woodbury Financial | 05/13/2022 | Discharged | Allegations concerning failure to obtain proper trade authorization for certain trades and information security concerns. |
| Jenna M. Farah-Fimbres | Mesa, AZ | Not
Registered |
04/29/2022 | Resignation | Registered banker resigned during course of bank investigation involving a number of employees with focus of investigation being bank funds missing from bank/automated teller machines. |
| Stefanie A. Hurkala | Hamilton Square, NJ | Barred from association with any FINRA member in all capacities
on 01/17/2023 |
04/28/022 | Discharged | Terminated by Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. following allegations that she avoided the threshold for a Currency Transaction Report by withdrawing funds and cashing a check in separate transactions. The allegations are unrelated to the securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
| Alexander E. Newman | Murrieta, CA | Grape Modern Wealth Management
Temecula, CA |
04/27/2022 | Resignation | The employee voluntarily resigned on April 27, 2022 after the Firm received an allegation that the employee did not obtain Firm clearance for his involvement in an outside activity. The Firm received an additional allegation that the employee hosted a client event without prior approval from the Firm. The event included a guest speaker who also provided financial support for the event. |
| Alexander T. Prisk | Duluth, MN | Not
Registered |
04/13/2022 | Discharged | Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. discharged banker following allegations that banker improperly reversed bank fee for bank customer. This activity was not related to the securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
| Michael C. Bentley | Phoenix, AZ | Sagepoint Financial | 04/12/2022 | Discharged | Registered banker discharged after admitting during bank investigation that he reversed fees totaling $85 charged to a family member’s bank account. Banker indicated during investigation he was unaware it was improper to reverse fees on a family member’s account. |
| Robin L. Matthews | Charlotte, NC | Not
Registered |
03/31/2022 | Discharged | On March 15, 2022, FINRA determined Ms. Matthews was subject to a disqualification as defined in Section 3(a)(39) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. |
| Roger A. Graham | San Antonio, TX | Braintrust Capital | 02/25/2022 | Discharged | Financial advisor’s employment terminated after he admitted during review to excessive trading in his personal securities account, contrary to prior Firm imposed trading limit set with advisor. No customer harm identified. |
| Spencer L. Watson | Upland, CA | Not
Registered |
02/08/2022 | Discharged | Terminated by Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. following allegations that he reversed two $35 overdraft fees on his own account. The allegations are unrelated to the securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
| Nicholas D. Drees | Duluth, MN | Not
Registered |
01/25/2022 | Discharged | WFBNA discharged registered banker after bank investigation determined he spent company time and used company email discussing an unapproved outside business interest with coworkers and customers. Bank also determined he accessed a customer’s account without a business purpose. This activity was not related to the securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
| Shawn M. Deetz | Clearwater, FL | Not
Registered |
01/25/2022 | Discharged | Licensed banker discharged after bank investigation revealed that banker marked electronic signature pad in location intended for customer signature the day after the related bank transaction occurred. Banker admitted signing signature pad. |
| Faazleen Buksh | Raleigh, NC | Capfinancial
Securities |
01/06/2022 | Resignation | Registered Client Associate cut and pasted a client’s signature on to a Firm document. No client harm was indicated. An original signature was obtained from the impacted client for the document at issue. |
| Erik J. Bach | Apex, NC | Not
Registered |
01/04/2022 | Discharged | Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. discharged banker after allegations that he marked a bank Customized Summary Form and a closing agreement for safe deposit box rather than obtaining the required bank customer’s signatures in order to complete the form and agreement. This activity was not related to the securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
| Lisa M. Idlett | Carteret, NJ | Suspended from association with any FINRA member in all capacities
from 10/03/2022 to 04/02/2023 |
01/04/2022 | Discharged | Investigation conducted by WF Bank concluded Licensed Banker signed client’s name as maker to multiple checks drawn on client’s WF Bank account payable to Licensed Banker. This activity was not related to the securities business of Wells Fargo Clearing Services, LLC. |
This report is intended to be educational in nature and is for the purpose of informing the investing public as well as securities regulators. The contents of this report are subject to BrokerCheck’s terms and conditions. All information current as of January 27th, 2023.
KlaymanToskes encourages investors who did business with any of the brokers listed above to review their accounts for signs of broker misconduct and/or investment losses.
Investors that suffered significant losses should contact attorney Lawrence L. Klayman, Esq., at 888-997-9956, or lklayman@klaymantoskes.com to discuss their recovery options. Every case is taken on a contingency basis, meaning we do not collect a fee unless we are able to obtain a financial recovery for you.
KlaymanToskes is a leading national securities law firm which practices exclusively in the field of securities arbitration on behalf of retail and institutional investors throughout the world in large and complex securities matters. The firm has recovered over $250 million in FINRA arbitrations and over $350 million in other securities litigation matters. KlaymanToskes has office locations in California, Florida, New York, and Puerto Rico.
KlaymanToskes, P.A.
Lawrence L. Klayman, Esq.
888-997-9956
lklayman@klaymantoskes.com
www.klaymantoskes.com