L.A. Philanthropist Charged With Investment Fraud
March 9, 2009 | Read Time: 1 minute
The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged Bruce Alan Friedman, a Los Angeles businessman, with diverting millions of dollars in investors’ money to support a lavish way of life and his personal charity, the Los Angeles Times reports.
A federal judge froze the assets of Friedman’s Diversified Lending Group and Applied Equities, which federal investigators say have sold some $216-million in “secured investment notes” since 2004, with promises to plow the money into real estate and mortgage lending.
The commission contends that Mr. Friedman spent $17-million of his clients’ money on himself and put another $1.8-million into his Friedman Charitable Foundation. He has gained a name in Los Angeles in recent years for his philanthropic activity, donating $10-million to build a children’s museum and partnering with the Dodgers baseball team on charity projects.
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