Securities dealer barred for fraudulent sales

CREATED Aug. 19, 2012

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PRAIRIE DU SAC, Wis. (AP) -- A securities dealer in southern Wisconsin has been barred from the industry after a regulatory panel said he made fraudulent sales to vulnerable elderly customers.
  
Christopher D. Kline was a broker in the Prairie du Sac office of Brookstone Securities.
  
He and Brookstone's owner were accused of selling risky mortgage obligations to unsophisticated investors who thought they were buying government-guaranteed bonds.
  
Kline and the company were investigated by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. In a ruling released Friday, the panel ordered Kline, the company and its owner to pay $2.6 million in fines and restitution. Kline and the owner were also barred from the industry.
  
Kline tells the Wisconsin State Journal (http://bit.ly/NbOyIL ) the allegations and decision were flawed. The ruling has been appealed.
  
Brookstone has since closed.