Fake South Florida advisors target Venezuelan-Americans in scheme, SEC alleges

September 5, 2024

The Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday filed a complaint against two South Florida men posing as financial advisors who targeted members of the Venezuelan-American community in a multi-million dollar investment scheme. 


Francisco Javier Malave Hernandez and Ricardo Javier Guerra Farias used a fake firm, Toller Stern Financial Services, as part of their scheme to defraud investors who bought close to $5 million in promissory notes. Most of the investors are members of the Venezuelan-American community, according to the SEC.


In a case of affinity fraud, the fraudsters who carry out scams frequently are, or pretend to be, members of the group they are trying to defraud, according to the SEC. Affinity fraud means the group could be a religious group, such as a particular denomination or church, or an ethnic group or immigrant community. It could be a racial minority or a particular workforce, including members of the military.


“An affinity group is any group that you belong to, be it professional, religious or social,” said Sander Ressler, managing director of Essential Edge Compliance Outsourcing Services. “Investors must always be aware and cautious of any individuals who are prospecting them through such a group.” 


Investment News



Be dubious about investment professionals who are marketing investments through an affinity group, one industry executive says.


By Lindsey Hawkins October 28, 2025
Arbitration IQ provides expert testimony to securities law attorneys, claimants, respondents and regulators in actions involving securities law. The firm is founded and led by Sander Ressler, who ranks among the nation’s most sought-after securities law expert witnesses. He has worked on more than 600 arbitration cases, provided testimony in 150 hearings and worked with more than 70 law firms. Learn more at: www.arbitrationiq.com.
April 21, 2025
A federal judge in Brooklyn last week approved the release of $400 million in funds to some of the beleaguered investors in GPB Capital Holdings who have not seen a nickel or returns since 2018, when the private placement investment scheme began to unravel.  Meanwhile, the sentencing of two top GPB executives, founder David Gentile, and broker-dealer and sale chief Jeff Schneider, was scheduled for this week but has been moved to May, according to court filings. Last August, a jury in federal court in Brooklyn found Gentile guilty of five counts of fraud and Schneider three. The federal government’s charges stemmed from their management of GPB Capital Holdings, which was founded in 2013, GPB Capital. The money manager sold its high risk private placements through dozens of independent broker-dealers and five years later had raised $1.8 billion from wealthy clients looking for yield in a decade ago when interest rates were next to zero.