The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged former Pennsylvania-based investment adviser Scott J. Mason, and his companies Rubicon Wealth Management LLC and Orchard Park Real Estate Holdings LLC, with misappropriating more than $20 million from at least 13 Rubicon advisory clients.
According to the SEC’s complaint, from at least 2014 to 2024, Mason made unauthorized transfers of money from Rubicon clients’ accounts to his own accounts and those of his entities, Rubicon and Orchard Park. As the complaint alleges, Mason used the money for his own purposes, including to pay country club dues, transfer it to other clients, and purchase a portion of a miniature golf course in New Jersey. The complaint further alleges that Mason forged clients’ signatures, made numerous misrepresentations about what he was doing with clients’ money, and concealed his fraud for years by providing fake account statements and tax documents.
“As alleged, Mason’s clients trusted him to invest their money as he said he would but, instead, he repeatedly abused that trust to enrich himself at their expense. He then lied to them and manipulated documents to cover his tracks,” said Nicholas P. Grippo, Regional Director of the SEC’s Philadelphia Regional Office. “This action once again shows the SEC’s commitment to holding advisers accountable when they violate the federal securities laws.”
The SEC’s complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, charges Mason, Rubicon, and Orchard Park with violating the antifraud provisions of the federal securities laws. Mason, Rubicon, and Orchard Park have consented to the entry of final judgments that permanently enjoin them from committing future violations of those provisions and provides that the court will decide the amounts of disgorgement, prejudgment interest, and civil penalties at a later date. The settlement is subject to court approval.
In a parallel action, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania today announced criminal charges against Mason.
The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Laura E.L. Gavin, Brian P. Thomas, and Norman P. Ostrove in the SEC’s Philadelphia Regional Office. It was supervised by Scott A. Thompson and Nicholas P. Grippo in the Philadelphia Regional Office. The litigation will be led by Spencer Willig and supervised by Gregory R. Bockin. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and the FBI.
