Former Fidelity broker barred over expense falsification

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority Inc. has barred former Fidelity Brokerage Services rep Orlando Vargas for falsely representing that he paid for computer equipment and then accepting the company's $2,000 reimbursement. Mr. Vargas, who worked for J.P. Morgan Securities for a year before joining Fidelity in 2011, sought reimbursement from Fidelity in 2016 for computer equipment that he claimed to have purchased as part of an employee program at the firm. He obtained $2,000 in reimbursement despite having canceled the order before completing the purchase. Fidelity discharged Mr. Vargas early in 2018, and he has not been employed by a Finra member firm since. (More: Finra proposes rule to hit rogue firms in the pocketbook)​