A former long-time broker who has been indicted on capital murder, wire fraud and Ponzi scheme charges is now facing sanctions from the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (Finra) for failing to respond to their investigation.
Finra said it began its investigation into Keith Todd Ashley for allegedly engaging in undisclosed outside business activities and private securities transactions after he was terminated by Parkland Securities, where he had been a broker since 2002.
By the time Finra began sending requests for information to Ashley, he was in the Bowie County Correctional Center in Texarkana, Texas, on the murder and securities fraud indictments. While at least one request was hand-delivered to Ashley, he did not answer, which is a violation of Finra rules, the regulator said.
As a result of Ashley’s lack of response to Finra’s request, the regulator has the authority to seek sanctions against the ex-broker, including an industry bar. But the incarcerated Ashley may have bigger concerns than a lifetime ban from the securities industry.
Ashley, the owner of the now-shuttered Nine Band Brewing in Allen, Texas, was taken into custody for alleged capital murder a year ago after a grand jury indicted him. According to the indictment, Ashley befriended James Seegan, a 62-year old brokerage client, allegedly in an attempt to gain control over his money. Authorities claim that Ashley shot Seegan in February 2020 and staged the crime scene to make it appear that Seegan committed suicide.
A police spokeswoman for the Carrolton Police Department told NBC Dallas-Forth Worth (NBCDFW) that "officers found aspects of the crime scene suspicious, including the fact that Seegan, who was right-handed, was holding the gun in his left hand.”
NBCDFW also first reported that Ashley was a financial advisor to Seeger and allegedly incapacitated him before murdering him. Because Ashley was charged with robbery in addition to murder, it makes the case a capital murder case, which in Texas carries the possibility of a sentence of life without parole or even the deathy penalty.
Ashley was also charged in November 2020 with defrauding investors out of more than $1.1 million, according to the indictment, which was filed in U.S. District Court.
Ashley promised investors “no-risk” unit investment trust (UIT) investments that would provide returns as high as 9%, according to the indictment. He then deposited their funds in multiple bank accounts, which he used to shuffle the money around to cover his personal expenses, including Nine Brand Brewing bills, credit card, mortgage, student loan and tuition payments and gambling at casinos.