Md. Attorney General Seeks To Shut Down ‘The Money Guys’

June 18--Maryland Attorney General Brian E. Frosh is seeking to shut down a prominent Towson financial-advice business, charging that it has fraudulently misrepresented the risks of its investment strategy.

Frosh also announced Thursday that his office wants to permanently prohibit Phillippe Rousseaux, owner of Everest Wealth Management and Everest Investment Advisors Inc., from offering his investment services in Maryland.

According to the Attorney General's Office, the companies are well-known in Baltimore for their televised infomercial ads promoting Rousseaux and his team as "The Money Guys." An order to show cause issued by Frosh's office alleges that the ads "lure customers with promises of guaranteed returns and limited risk."

Everest is a high-profile sponsor of Baltimore Orioles broadcasts.

The attorney general charged that Rousseaux and his firms violated their responsibility to investors by blurring the distinction between the insurance policies they were selling and their fee-based investment advice. The complaint said the companies continued to do so despite receiving repeated warnings from the attorney general's Securities Division.

John Anthony, who identified himself as a manager at Everest, said the companies had no comment Thursday morning but would issue a statement later.

mdresser@baltsun.com

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