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Former summer intern sued by Raymond James over alleged smear campaign

On Behalf of | Jan 23, 2025 | Financial News

A former summer intern for Raymond James & Associates is being sued for allegedly running a smear campaign against the company, reports Financial Advisor.

Raymond James & Associates, along with two of its representatives Timothy VanBenthuysen and Richard Redvanly, filed the lawsuit in federal court in Ohio against Paul T. Saba Jr. of Cincinnati.

The complaint said Saba, a 2024 summer investment banking intern, launched a defamation campaign several months after learning he would not be hired for a full-time job by Raymond James.  The alleged cyber-harassment attacks included emails impersonating firm employees that invited recipients to join a bogus “Neo-Nazi” club for bankers.  Saba is also accused of creating fake email threads making accusations of rape, infidelity and insider trading.

The suit contends that from at least November 4, 2024, until at least January 6 of this year, Saba utilized fictitious emails to engage in “an insidious, repugnant and wide-reaching cyber-harassment campaign” against VanBenthuysen and Redvanly, spreading malicious lies that have hurt and damaged their personal and professional reputations.

The alleged actions began after VanBenthuysen notified Saba that there were no jobs available in the healthcare unit where he had been interested in working.  According to the complaint, Saba sent email messages from bogus accounts to multiple individuals inside and outside the company accusing VanBenthuysen and Redvanly of insider trading and of separately being convicted of raping teenage girls.

The suit said the emails appeared to stop when Raymond James sent a cease-and-desist letter to Saba in early January, alerting him that the firm had linked him to the campaign. The complaint alleges defamation, civil liability for damages from criminal telecommunications harassment, placing plaintiffs in a false light and infliction of emotional distress.

“The perpetrator has tried to wage this horrendous Campaign anonymously by using fictitious email accounts to hide his identity in an effort to spread false and damaging information without consequences,” Raymond James and the two reps allege in the complaint.

Ian Mitchell of the law firm Reminger in Cleveland, who represents Raymond James, VanBenthuysen and Redvanly, declined comment because the case is an “active investigation.”

Raymond James said it had to close its Atlanta investment banking office on January 7 and 8 because of the security threats posed by the emails. The suit said VanBenthuysen and Redvanly have suffered personal and professional damage and have had to “expend significant financial resources and efforts to repair the damage to their reputations.” It added, “As a result of the defendant’s conduct, plaintiffs have had to expend significant financial resources to determine the source of the false emails [and] evaluate the extent of damage they caused.”

Saba could not be reached for comment.

The plaintiffs are seeking defamatory, civil and other damages expected to exceed $75,000, punitive damages and attorney’s fees and costs.

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