SEC Drops Case Against Former Pru Broker, Supervisor

The Securities and Exchange Commission has dropped its case against Robert J. Ostrowski, a former broker with Prudential Securities in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., and his supervisor, Rees T. Harris, four years after having pressed the charges.

Earlier, the New York Stock Exchange awarded Ostrowski $2 million in deferred compensation and attorney fees for having been fired by Prudential in 2001.

The SEC said that Ostrowski earned more than $51,000 in excess commissions by selling investors Class B mutual fund shares when they could have qualified for discounts in Class A shares.

According to Ostrowski’s attorney, the SEC changed its mind about the case when Ostrowski was able to draw comparisions between his lawsuit and another one in Atlanta last year, which the SEC also dropped.