NEWPORT, RI – Elizabeth Baldwin, of Newport, Rhode Island, has been accused of commodity fraud by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), according to a complaint filed November 15, 2007. Baldwin allegedly fraudulently solicited over $500,000 from the public to trade commodity futures contracts.
The CFTC alleges that from January 2004 through the present, Baldwin, operating under her own name and the name Newportant Group, misled investors into believing their funds would be pooled and used to trade futures contracts, specifically E-Mini S&P 500, 10-Year Notes, and 30-Year Bond futures. She reportedly told at least one investor the pool was generating monthly profits between 3 and 10 percent, a claim the CFTC asserts was false, as the pool lost money in all but one month.
Further allegations state that Baldwin falsely informed customers their funds would be held in segregated trading accounts with futures commission merchants. However, the CFTC claims Baldwin maintained accounts solely in her own name and never established an account for the pool itself.
The complaint also details accusations of Baldwin providing false monthly account statements to pool participants and operating as an unregistered commodity pool operator, violating CFTC regulations.
U.S. District Court Judge Deborah A. Batts of the Southern District of New York issued an order freezing Baldwin’s assets and preventing the destruction of any relevant business records. The CFTC worked in conjunction with the National Futures Association, the Rhode Island State Police, the Newport Police Department, and the Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation during this investigation. Penalties and restitution amounts have not yet been determined.
Source: CFTC.gov
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