By Kenneth Corbin
A former broker and investment advisor accused of operating a long-running scheme that bilked investors out of $1.6 million has pleaded guilty to investment advisor fraud. Jeffrey Higgins, 54, of Baker City, Ore., agreed to repay the money he stole under the plea agreement.
The Justice Department says that from 2007 through 2024, Higgins told his clients that he could invest their money in securities at a deep discount of up to 91% through a special arrangement he had with a transfer agent. Instead, he purchased stocks at market value, then sold them without his clients' knowledge or permission, and transferred the funds into his personal bank account.
Prosecutors say that he issued clients bogus account statements concealing the sales of their stock that he had secretly made. He arranged for the real statements to be sent to a post office box that he controlled, according to the Justice Department.
Higgins' lawyer, Robert Hamilton of the Federal Public Defender office, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on the plea agreement or what he is hoping for at sentencing, which is scheduled for Dec. 7. Higgins could face a maximum of five years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, as well as a $10,000 fine, in addition to the restitution payments.
He is also facing a civil lawsuit over the stock-stealing scheme by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Registration records indicate that he has settled several individual customer complaints, but that three remain pending.
Higgins was last registered with Western International Securities, which fired him in June 2024 after he alerted the firm of his misconduct, according to the online database BrokerCheck. Finra, the brokerage industry's self-regulator, then began looking into the circumstances of Higgins' dismissal, and barred him from the industry after he refused to cooperate with the investigation.
Higgins had initially pleaded not guilty in the criminal case but changed his plea on Tuesday. His trial had been scheduled to begin June 16.
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 03, 2026 14:23 ET (18:23 GMT)
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