SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico, Oct. 9, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Lawyers with the Securities Law Firm of Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas LLP, www.sseklaw.com, are investigating claims involving Wilson Dennis Colbergtrigo ("Colbergtrigo") and his prior brokerage firms. According to records with the Financial Investment Regulatory Authority ("FINRA"), Colbergtrigo began operating as a financial professional for UBS Financial Services, Inc. ("UBS") in Puerto Rico in 1991, before which he was licensed through Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc. ("Merrill Lynch").
Colbergtrigo was fired from Merill Lynch for borrowing tens of thousands of dollars from a firm customer in violation of firm policy. Since then, customers have filed written complaints against him sixteen times, most of which allege that Colbergtrigo made unsuitable investment recommendations to Puerto Rico investors.
Recently, a number of customers of Colbergtrigo have alleged that he recommended that they invest huge portions of their accounts with Colbergtrigo in Puerto Rico municipal bonds, many of which were UBS proprietary funds. They have further alleged that Colbergtrigo recommended that his clients take out margin loans or other types of loans to make even larger purchases in these products. These customers have now suffered catastrophic losses as the value of Puerto Rico municipal bonds continues to crash, causing margin calls and even larger losses.
This level of customer complaints is far in excess of the norm in the financial industry. Present or former clients of Wilson Colbergtrigo should carefully review their accounts to ensure that they have not suffered losses from improper recommendations or other wrongful conduct. If you are or were a client of Wilson Colbergtrigo, or suffered losses in any other municipal bond investments made at the recommendation of your broker, contact the law firm of Shepherd, Smith, Edwards & Kantas LLP for a free, confidential evaluation of your account. Partners with the firm will be in and around San Juan from October 13th-October 15th meeting with individuals who suffered losses in Puerto Rico Municipal bonds. If you are interested in meeting with one or both of these attorneys, please contact us as soon as possible.
Shepherd Smith Edwards & Kantas LLP has a team of attorneys, consultants and staff with more than 100 years of combined experience in the securities industry and in securities law. For more than two decades, our firm has represented thousands of investors nationwide to recover losses. We have represented clients in Federal and state courts and in arbitration through the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the New York Stock Exchange Inc. (NYSE), the American Arbitration Association (AAA) and in private arbitration actions.