Former Merrill Lynch Advisor Sentenced to 8 Years in Prison for Theft

Posted on December 22nd, 2020 at 4:07 PM
Former Merrill Lynch Advisor Sentenced to 8 Years in Prison for Theft

From the Desk of Jim Eccleston at Eccleston Law LLC:

Christopher Hibbard, a former Merrill Lynch advisor from Louisville, Kentucky, has been sentenced to eight years in prison for embezzlement, AdvisorHub reported. The sentencing comes after Hibbard pled guilty to wire and investment fraud in June 2020.  According to federal prosecutors, Hibbard stole more than $4.2 million from several customer accounts.  

Federal prosecutors alleged that between February 2007 and December 2008, Hibbard stole $1.2 million from one client by way of wire transfers from the client’s brokerage account.  Additionally, federal prosecutors alleged that from January 2011 to December 2017, Hibbard made more than 300 unauthorized transfers from client accounts to Hibbard’s personal American Express account. Federal prosecutors further alleged that to effectuate these transfers, Hibbard engaged in unauthorized trading and liquidation of client investments. Hibbard then created false documents to cover up the unauthorized transfers, according to federal prosecutors.

To date, Merrill Lynch has paid over $6.7 million to settle customer complaints related to Hibbard’s theft. Hibbard was barred from association with any FINRA member firm in any capacity in May 2018.

Tags: eccleston, eccleston law, merrill lynch, prison sentence, prison time, former advisor

Return to Archive

TESTIMONIALS

Previous
Next

You guys are good!

Mike L.

LATEST NEWS AND ARTICLES

February 4, 2025
Wells Fargo Faces $3.37 Million FINRA Award Over Alleged Elder Exploitation

A FINRA arbitration panel has ordered Wells Fargo Clearing Services and its advisor, Stephen L. Smith, to pay approximately $3.37 million in damages to the estate of Genell Mathis.

February 3, 2025
Bank of America Agrees to Consent Order Over Anti-Money-Laundering Deficiencies

Bank of America Corp. has entered into a consent order with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to address deficiencies in its anti-money-laundering (AML) and sanctions compliance programs.

January 31, 2025
UBS Settles FINRA Claims Over Supervision of Short-Term Preferred Stock Trades

According to AdvisorHub, UBS Wealth Management USA’s broker-dealer has agreed to pay $3.5 million in sanctions over allegations of supervisory failures related to short-term trading of syndicate preferred stock.