FINRA barred a Morgan Stanley broker for sending personal emails riddled with misrepresentations and misleading statements.  Jon Tadd Roberts, a Casa Grande, AZ-based Registered Rep, agreed to settle FINRA charges he sent unapproved emails from his personal email address to his member firm’s customers and a potential investor that consisted of emails with attached documents containing
misrepresentations and misleading statements that he created on his home computer
that were written on his firm’s letterhead. 

• Roberts misrepresented that his firm would approve the issuance of a line of credit of up to $10 billion to a firm customer and a potential investor if certain conditions were met.
• Roberts attached another document concerning the issuance of a multi-billion dollar LOC (line of credit) to additional emails he sent to a firm customer.
• Roberts did not provide copies of the documents for review and approval to his firm.
• By attaching documents that contained misrepresentations and misleading statements to emails sent to a firm customer and a potential investor, Roberts exposed his firm to significant potential liability.
• Roberts sent an unapproved email from his personal email to another firm customer and attached a letter on firm letterhead with wire transfer instructions in connection with CD's (certificates of deposit).
• Roberts forwarded the unapproved correspondence from his home computer, thereby bypassing the firm’s surveillance systems and preventing the firm’s review and approval.

All told, Roberts sent 17 pieces of unapproved correspondence to 2 firm customers and a potential investor between April and May 2009.  Eight of these emails had attachments that contained misrepresentations and misleading statements.  This is FINRA Case #2009018509601.   [Disciplinary Actions for June 2011.]