HOUSTON, TX – January 15, 2008 – A federal jury in Houston, Texas, found Anthony Dizona guilty of market manipulation related to natural gas prices, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced today. The verdict follows a one-week trial where Dizona did not offer a defense.
The jury determined that Dizona violated the Commodity Exchange Act on eight separate occasions between October 2001 and June 2002, while employed by Shell Trading Gas and Power Company, a service provider for Shell subsidiary Coral Energy Resources, L.P. The CFTC originally filed a complaint against Dizona on February 1, 2005, alleging he knowingly submitted inaccurate price reports to key industry compilers including Platts and Intelligence Press, Inc.
Evidence presented at trial demonstrated that Dizona participated in a scheme where traders circulated emails directing each other to report biased prices, aiming to benefit their trading positions. Dizona knowingly delivered dozens of these inaccurate fixed-price reports for natural gas pipeline locations in the Western United States.
“Attempting to manipulate the natural gas market is a serious offense that the government will eventually uncover and prosecute with all of its resources,” stated CFTC Director of Enforcement Gregory Mocek. “This jury verdict demonstrates that we will do what it takes to make sure traders like Dizona are brought to justice.”
While the specific penalties for Dizona have not been announced, five other defendants involved in the same scheme settled charges in November 2007, agreeing to a consent order that imposed a collective $1 million civil monetary penalty. The CFTC staff responsible for the case included Joseph Konizeski, John W. Dunfee, Luke B. Marsh, Mary E. Kaminski, Tracey Wingate, Carlene Gordon, Paul G. Hayeck, and Joan M. Manley.
Source: CFTC.gov
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