A former South Florida Morgan Stanley Smith Barney broker’s decision to blow the whistle on alleged misconduct has resulted in an almost $1.8 million award from the Securities and Exchange Commission, which said the complaint helped uncover crucial evidence and claw back millions for investors.

It was a win for James D. Sallah of Sallah Astarita & Cox in Boca Raton and Scott L. Silver of Silver Law Group in Coral Springs, who represent the anonymous whistleblower. And while it’s rare for a company insider to risk their career to expose fraud, they say the result demonstrates how impactful it can be.