One of five whistleblowers to share their stories in Compliance Week’s “Witness to Wrongdoing” series has finally received an award from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), nearly six years after he filed his claim.
Andrew Russo, a former concert pianist and one-time political candidate who now works as an independent financial and tax adviser, received the award from the SEC in December for blowing the whistle on a Ponzi scheme launched by a childhood acquaintance. The agency issued no press release, likely because the award was small, according to Russo and his attorney, Michael Ronickher of Constantine Cannon.
