Australian Securities Investments Commission (ASIC) chairman David Knott says the three and a half year jail sentence handed down to a former Hartley Poynton stockbroker guilty of fraud sends out a warning to the wider financial services industry.
Former Gold Coast based Hartley Poynton stockbroker Sean Anthony Seeto pleaded guilty to six counts of fraud involving $298,000.
In 1999 Seeto attempted to invest $230,000 of client funds in an investment scheme not authorised by Hartley Poynton. He also deposited $68,000 of client funds intended for investment into his own account and used the funds for personal purposes.
“This was a serious double fraud, and any stockbroker or financial adviser who may be tempted to defraud a client should take note of this sentence,” Knott says.
After receiving the initial complaint from Hartley Poynton in January 2000, ASIC obtained injunctive orders freezing Seeto’s accounts. $230,000 was returned to Hartley Poynton and all investors affected by Seeto’s misconduct were compensated.
Seeto’s sentence will be suspended following 12 months imprisonment, on the condition he does not committ another offence for a period of five years.
