The Securities and Exchange Commission said Thursday that it has temporarily halted the operations of an Orange County investment advisor it has accused of running a fraudulent investment scheme... The temporary restraining order, issued April 7 by a federal judge in Los Angeles, freezes the assets of Richard H. Nickles of Dana Point and his three Santa Ana companies: Innovative Advisory Services Inc., Innovative Advisory Services and Island Trader.
The SEC has accused Nickles, 53, of raising about $3 million through newspaper ads for investments that purportedly were guaranteed by the U.S. government or insured. He did not invest the money as promised, the complaint said...
LA Times: O.C. investment advisor accused of fraud