NOTE: Stipulations of Fact and Consent to Penalty (SFC); Offers of Settlement (OS); and Letters of Acceptance Waiver, and Consent (AWC) are entered into by Respondents without admitting or denying the allegations, but consent is given to the described sanctions & to the entry of findings. Additionally, for AWCs, if FINRA has reason to believe a violation has occurred and the member or associated person does not dispute the violation, FINRA may prepare and request that the member or associated person execute a letter accepting a finding of violation, consenting to the imposition of sanctions, and agreeing to waive such member's or associated person's right to a hearing before a hearing panel, and any right of appeal to the National Adjudicatory Council, the SEC, and the courts, or to otherwise challenge the validity of the letter, if the letter is accepted. The letter shall describe the act or practice engaged in or omitted, the rule, regulation, or statutory provision violated, and the sanction or sanctions to be imposed.

Charles Caputo Jr.
OS/2009016885101

Caputo provided falsified account statements to a customer for a personal and a corporate account the customer held at Caputo’s member firm, with the intent of leading the customer to believe the all-but-worthless accounts held securities valued as high as $600,000; both accounts had incurred substantial losses. 

The accounts were held at Caputo’s firm, the customer received account statements through the firm’s clearing firms; however, the customer also received fabricated account statements Caputo provided him. The typical one-page fabricated account statement listed the account name and number, the statement period, a false market value, a false cash balance and a false option value. These fake statements were transmitted by facsimile from Caputo’s home-office fax number. The false statements the customer received from Caputo reported that the personal account was valued at $292,020.53 and that the corporate account was valued at $325,446.36; in reality the personal account was valued at less than $70 and the corporate account had been closed.

Apparently relying on the values shown on the false statements, the customer contacted Caputo and requested that he wire $120,000 from the corporate account; Caputo advised the customer that there was no money in either account.

Caputo failed to appear and testify in a FINRA on-the-record interview.

Charles Caputo Jr. : Barred

Tags: False Statements