Stanford Employee on Trial in Arkansas
by June 22, 2012 4:42 pm 198 views
Federal prosecutors said last week that it would be “impracticable” to enforce a restitution order against “Sir” Allen Stanford, the Texas Ponzi schemer whose victims included scores of Arkansans.
While the Justice Department just wants to divide up assets seized after Stanford was arrested, a couple of those local victims are looking to a former Stanford agent for their satisfaction.
The first — possibly the only — trial scheduled in Arkansas over the phony certificates of deposit sold by Stanford International Bank of Antigua is set for July 10 in U.S. Bankruptcy Judge James G. Mixon’s courtroom in Little Rock.
Nancy McGraw bought $112,000 worth of the CDs and Pfeifer Sutter Family LLC bought $270,000 worth on the advice of their financial adviser, Christopher Collier, who worked at the Stanford Financial Group office in Little Rock.
After Collier filed for bankruptcy in July 2010, McGraw and Pfeifer Sutter claimed he defrauded them and objected to having their claims discharged in bankruptcy.
According to the complaint, Collier solicited the investments in November 2007 — the same month the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, warned Stanford not to market the securities as CDs.
Collier has denied the accusations. Otherwise, his bankruptcy attorney, Frederick S. “Tripp” Wetzel III of Little Rock, had little to add.
“All I can say is it’s set for trial,” he said.