William Shopoff

An investor lawsuit still is pending, however, accusing Shopoff and various Shopoff entities of failing to pay them $31 million and fraudulently transferring assets to shell companies to avoid covering those debts. Shopoff’s attorney, Bruce Kelson, called the lawsuit a contractual business dispute “we hope will be amicably resolved in the short term.” FINRA’s January 2019 complaint accuses Shopoff, his brother, Stephen, and Shopoff Securities Inc. of fraudulently selling $12.5 million in promissory notes to 29 friends and relatives from 2010 through 2017. The complaint also says the Shopoffs failed to tell investors their money would pay William Shopoff’s personal expenses and to repay previous investors. While Shopoff and his wife, Cindy, personally guaranteed the investments, they failed to disclose their personal assets were largely illiquid, the complaint said. The complaint also said Shopoff inflated his cash assets.