Stock Analyst Charged With Lying, Forgery

The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged investment adviser Mark E. Spangler with lying about his academic credentials and forging an audit document.

Spangler’s corporation, Boston-based The Spangler Group Inc., has been described in financial publications as being among the top 10 investment analysts, said SEC spokesman Chiles Larson.

A restraining order obtained Friday in U.S. District Court in Boston prevents Spangler from withdrawing money from the firm and from controlling or possessing securities of clients.

“One reason for the urgency was that the guy had been lying about everything under the sun,” Larson said.

The SEC alleges that Spangler engaged in fraud by saying he had earned a bachelor’s degree from Boston University and a master’s degree in business administration from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. “He doesn’t hold a degree from either,” said Harry Weiss, the SEC’s branch chief of the division of enforcement.

Weiss also said Spangler forged an audit opinion on the letterhead of Arthur Young, an accounting firm, on the financial results of Spangler’s company.