Holic claims he warned bilked investors -- not so, says one of Christensen's victims

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In today's Sarasota Herald-Tribune, mayoral candidate John Holic claims he notified all investors that fired investment salesman Brian Christensen had left the employ of A.G. Edwards (see Ethics charges fly in last days of Venice race by Kim Hackett).

From that article: "We sent a letter to all of his [Christensen's] clients that he was no longer an employee and to contact us about any irregularities," Holic said.

Not true, according to Venice resident Roger Bellehumeur, one of A.G. Edwards' former customers and one of Christensen's Ponzi victims. Bellehumeur, an A.G. Edwards client from 1996 until 2004, stated today by phone that he never received any such letter.

Bellehumeur and his wife sued A.G. Edwards and were awarded $1.2 million, including $250,000 in punitive damages for Edwards' "lack of honest dealings."

Bellehumeur stated this morning by phone that he never received any such letter and that the so-called letter was a major point of contention in his civil case against A.G. Edwards.

Bellehumeur said he met with Holic prior to Christensen's firing. Bellehumeur stated he brought along a wealth of materials documenting how he and his wife had been scammed. Bellehumeur stated that Holic was amazed, both at the amount of documentation and the extent of the scam as uncovered by Bellehumeur.

"Holic was useless, we could never get any information or help from him after that," Bellehumeur said.

When asked if he ever received one of the letters that Holic claims he sent out to all investors, Bellehumeur was adament: "No. They said that in court, but they never could prove that they actually sent one to me. I never received one. Maybe he [Holic] thought that since I came to him, he didn't need to send one to me."

The Bellehumeurs eventually went to law enforcement with their complaint, something that Holic apparently never did. Holic claims that he turned the matter over to A.G. Edwards' legal department That's a good move if you want to cover your corporate liabilities, however it turned out to be a not-so-good move in covering clients' liabilities, as the Bellehumeurs had to fight Holic's office tooth and nail in court to get their stolen money back.