Ex-LPL Broker Sentenced to Six Years for Defrauding Elderly Client

A former LPL Financial broker, Bradley Goodbred, 57, has been sentenced to six years in prison for systematically stealing more than $1 million from an elderly female client over a nine-year period. Eric Weis, state’s attorney for  Kendall County announced the sentencing, which occurred on July 22, sending Goodbred to the Illinois Department of Corrections.

He was booked into county jail on the same day, according to online records.

Goodbred, who was registered as a broker with LPL Financial for approximately 11 years (from 2009 to 2021), pled guilty in April to financial exploitation of an elderly person, a Class 1 felony. His arrest took place in 2022 following an investigation initiated by local authorities.

According to AltsWire past reporting, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission had filed a civil complaint against Goodbred roughly three years ago, noting that the elderly victim was suffering from dementia.

Further, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority barred Goodbred from the industry in 2021. LPL Financial had dismissed him that same year for “utilizing unapproved power of attorney to facilitate distribution of customer funds to a real estate company [that he, the] representative owned and operated,” as stated in his BrokerCheck record.

The criminal investigation began in January 2021 when the court-appointed guardian for the victim, born in 1924, reported to the Yorkville Police Department that Goodbred had been exploiting the woman. Detectives quickly discovered that Goodbred had served as the victim’s financial planner and adviser while at LPL Financial. In June 2010, Goodbred had obtained power of attorney over the victim’s affairs.

Prosecutors revealed that Goodbred leveraged this position and his role to steer the victim’s funds into a separate real estate business he owned and operated. He would approve withdrawals from her trust account into her checking account, from which checks were then written to his company. These funds were subsequently transferred to Goodbred’s personal accounts, with no benefit to the victim.

Evidence showed that between May 31, 2019, and Feb. 10, 2020, Goodbred stole nearly $340,000. The full extent of his deception, uncovered by investigators, amounted to $1.3 million, dating back to 2011.

While Goodbred did repay some of the stolen funds, the victim reportedly recovered the remaining losses through a settlement with LPL Financial, according to information from the SEC.

During sentencing, the presiding judge emphasized the gravity of Goodbred’s actions, asserting that probation would undermine the seriousness of the crime. The judge remarked that Goodbred had groomed the elderly victim, highlighting the predatory nature of his conduct.

Goodbred’s six-year sentence will be followed by a year of mandatory supervised release.

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