U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Litigation Release No. 20398 / December 13, 2007
United States v. Robert Bradbury, (E.D.Pa., Criminal No. 07-0764)
Grand Jury Indicts Robert Bradbury for Defrauding Pennsylvania School Districts
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced today that on December 11, 2007, Robert Bradbury (Bradbury), the chairman, and a principal shareholder of, Dolphin & Bradbury, Incorporated (D&B), a Philadelphia broker-dealer, was indicted by a grand jury convened by the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
The nine count criminal indictment charges Bradbury with defrauding four Pennsylvania school districts by selling them high-risk securities that were unlawful and inappropriate investments for the districts. According to the indictment, Bradbury concealed from the school districts the true nature of and risks associated with the high-risk bond anticipation notes, issued to finance a speculative golf course project known as Whitetail. The indictment alleges that in order to facilitate the scheme, Bradbury also knowingly executed certificates containing false statements of material facts so as to mislead others involved in the Whitetail project about the identity of the holders of the bond anticipation notes. According to the indictment, the notes eventually defaulted in September 2004, and the four school districts collectively lost approximately $10.5 million as a result of the fraud. If convicted, Bradbury faces a maximum of 160 years imprisonment and a $2 million fine.
Previously, in August 2006, the Commission filed a civil injunctive action against Bradbury, D&B and Bradbury's wife, Margaret, as a relief defendant, with respect to Bradbury's conduct in the Whitetail project. SEC v. Robert J. Bradbury, Dolphin & Bradbury, Incorporated and Margaret B. Bradbury as Relief Defendant, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Civil Action No. 06-CV-3435. The Commission charged Bradbury and D&B with, among other things, violations of the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws as well as regulations relating to the review and distribution of official statements by brokers. The trial in the Commission's lawsuit is scheduled to commence in May 2008.
Additional information, including a copy of the Commission's complaint, may be found in Litigation Release No. 19792 (August 3, 2006).