The Arkansas insurance regulator has revoked the license of a Fort Smith insurance agent recently charged with fraud and money laundering.
Arkansas Insurance Commissioner Allen Kerr revoked the license of Samuel Bowron Phillips and ordered him to pay $127,748 to his two victims.
Phillips, who is in federal custody, allegedly diverted investors’ money to a fictitious company that he set up, according to a complaint filed against him in October 2015.
Last week, a federal court charged him with 11 counts of mail fraud, one count of wire fraud, and three counts of money laundering.
The complaint alleged that he moved four fixed indexed retirement annuities worth $127,748.06 belonging to a Fort Smith couple from their former company to Paradigm Financial Partners LLC of Barling.
The victims never received any policy or documentation from Paradigm and still have no access to or knowledge of the location of their retirement investment. The transaction resulted in a loss of value in the annuities of $27,259.76.
An investigation conducted by the Arkansas Insurance Department found that Paradigm was never an insurance agency and that its license had been revoked by the State Council.
According to the complaint, Phillips opened checking accounts in the name of Paradigm and one other company.
“Preying upon the retirement funds of hardworking Arkansans by any insurance agent in our state is unacceptable,” Kerr said.
