Kimberly Pine Kitts of Palmer Massachusetts a stockbroker formerly registered with Royal Alliance Associates Inc. is the subject of a customer initiated investment related complaint which was resolved for $232,761.77 in damages on October 17, 2019 based upon accusations that the customer had been defrauded by the stockbroker during the time that she was associated with Royal Alliance Associates.
Kitts has been identified in five additional customer initiated investment related disputes concerning allegations of her misconduct when she was associated with Royal Alliance Associates. FINRA Public Disclosure reveals that a customer filed an investment related complaint regarding Kitts’s activities where the customer sought $180,000.00 in damages founded on accusations of the stockbroker’s failure to execute the customer’s mutual fund transactions at Royal Alliance Associates.
Kitts is also referenced in a customer initiated investment related written complaint in which the customer requested $44,000.00 in damages supported by allegations that their annuity exchanges were not appropriate. Another customer filed an investment related complaint involving Kitts’s conduct where the customer sought $24,778.00 in damages based upon accusations of bad advice by Kitts regarding a stock trading strategy.
On May 11, 2018, a different customer initiated investment related complaint concerning Kitts’s activities was settled for $1,969,086.67 in damages founded on allegations that the customer’s funds had been misappropriated or converted by Kitts during the period that she was associated with Royal Alliance.
Kitts has also been sanctioned by securities regulators including SEC and FINRA. She has been barred from associating with any Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) member in any capacity supported by accusations that she failed to provide information to FINRA regarding her activities. Case No. 2017056380201 (Mar. 12, 2018).
Kitts has also been barred by SEC from being a stockbroker or investment adviser representative based upon findings of Kitts defrauding investors while associated with Marquis Consulting LLC. In the Matter of Kimberly Pine Kitts Administrative Proceeding File No. 3-19193 (June 6, 2019). SEC noted that Kitts pleaded guilty to four counts of wire fraud and one count of investment adviser fraud. United States v. Kimberly Kitts Criminal Action No. 1:18-CR-10325. The regulator stated that $337,500.00 in customer funds were misused by Kitts’s fraudulent actions.
SEC indicated that Kitts misappropriated funds from customers’ annuity accounts and brokerage accounts between 2013 and 2018. She forged check requests, wire requests and withdrawal requests to effect transactions. The regulator noted that in one case, a customer was misled by Kitts into taking funds from their retirement savings at which point those funds were placed into Kitts’s account secretively.
Kitts was associated with Royal Alliance Associates between April 8, 2004 and November 15, 2017 at which point she was discharged by the securities broker dealer founded on allegations of misappropriation.
