SEC orders A.G. Edwards brokers to pay fines

An administrative law judge with the Securities & Exchange Commission has ordered three brokers with the old A.G. Edwards brokerage firm to pay fines and give up money netted in a market timing scheme in Massachusetts and Florida.

In May, A.G. Edwards agreed to pay $3.86 million in fines to settle federal charges that it failed to supervise brokers in the scheme, which involved frequent trades in clients’ mutual fund accounts.

In an initial order issued Monday, the judge ordered the brokers to pay fines of $250,000 each. The brokers and additional penalties are:

• Thomas C. Bridge, 40, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., who was ordered to pay $39,808 in funds netted in the scheme. Bridge is suspended from associating with a brokerage firm for a year.
• James D. Edge, 45, of Lake Worth, Fla., was suspended for 30 days and barred from supervisory roles at brokerage firms. He had been Bridge’s supervisor in Edwards’ Boca Raton, Fla., branch.
• Jeffrey K. Robles, 38, of Kingston, Mass., was suspended for 30 days and barred from supervisory roles at brokerage firms. Robles had been the branch manager at Edwards’ Boston Back Bay office.

Wachovia Corp. bought A.G. Edwards Inc. in October and merged it with its Wachovia Securities business. Wachovia declined to comment on the SEC case.