NEWPORT COAST, CA – Abdul Sultan Walji, 51, of San Juan Capistrano, California, faces potential permanent revocation of his CFTC registration following allegations of misappropriating investor funds and providing false reports, according to a notice filed by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on February 20, 2014.
The CFTC alleges that Walji, along with his firm Arista LLC, based in Newport Coast, is subject to statutory disqualification from registration due to a December 3, 2013, consent order issued by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. The court found that Walji and Arista engaged in fraudulent practices, including misappropriating investor funds, submitting false quarterly statements to investors and inaccurate reports to the National Futures Association (NFA), and making misrepresentations to the CFTC.
The order permanently enjoined Walji and Arista from violating anti-fraud provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act and from engaging in any further trading or registration applications. Furthermore, the court mandated restitution totaling over $8.25 million, and levied civil monetary penalties of $6.45 million against Walji and $1.54 million against Arista.
Adding to these civil penalties, Walji was also convicted of criminal commodities fraud on July 2, 2013, by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in connection with the same activities. He was subsequently sentenced to 151 months in prison on November 15, 2013. This criminal conviction further solidifies his statutory disqualification from CFTC registration.
The CFTC acknowledged the assistance provided by the NFA in this investigation. The case was led by CFTC staff members Michael P. Geiser, Douglas K. Yatter, Philip D. Rix, Lenel Hickson, Jr., and Manal M. Sultan.
Source: CFTC.gov
Related Federal Cases
- Kenneth Thom, Investment Adviser Fraud, New York NY, 2026 · New York
- Uber Technologies, LLC and Uber USA, LLC, Subscription Service Fraud, New York 2023 · New York
- Letitia James, Securities Fraud, New York 2023 · Washington
- Stella Boyadjian, Visa Fraud Scheme, New York 2024 · Washington
- Christian Hicks, Bank Fraud and Identity Theft, New York 2024 · Washington
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
US NewsUS NewsUS NewsUS News