SEC Says FishHawk Area Man Bilked Investors Out Of $5.5 Million

LITHIA, FL — The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed charges Wednesday against a Lithia man accused of defrauding investors out of $5.5 million.

According to the SEC, between 2015 and 2019, Steven L. Brickner falsely represented to more than 60 investors that he would use their money to purchase a Colorado-licensed marijuana dispensary network that he planned to list for public trading, providing significant profits for the investors.

Instead, the SEC said Bricker used about $3 million of the investors' funds on a lavish lifestyle including $1.2 million spent on classic and luxury cars, including a 2013 Bentley, 2017 Corvette, 2017 Camaro, 1969 Camaro, two 1968 Camaros, a 1965 Corvette, two 1963 Corvettes, a 1957 Chevy and a 1970 Mach 1 Mustang.

The SEC said Brickner blew another $335,000 at an adult entertainment club and purchased $465,000 in crypto-currency coins.

Additionally, SEC investigators said he loaned himself $580,000 to pay off the mortgage on his home on Audubon Manor Boulevard in the upscale neighborhood of Fish Hawk Trails. The home is valued at $950,000, according to Hillsborough County Property Appraiser records.

The SEC also said Brickner misrepresented his experience as a successful entrepreneur to investors, failing to disclose he had filed for bankruptcy in 2016. He also made "baseless claims to investors about a purportedly imminent merger."

The SEC’s complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

While not admitting any guilt, Brickner signed an agreement enjoining him to pay back the investors' funds with interest as well as other penalties.

The settlement is subject to court approval.