Orlando, Florida resident Emir Jesus Matos Camargo and his company, Aureus Revenue Group LLC, are facing civil charges from the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for allegedly operating a $1.5 million commodity pool fraud. The CFTC filed the enforcement action in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida on September 12, 2024.
According to the complaint, Matos and Aureus solicited funds from at least 32 investors between September 2019 and November 2022, promising guaranteed monthly returns of 1.5% to 3.75% on their commodity pool investments. The CFTC alleges this was a fraudulent scheme, with funds being misappropriated for personal expenses and used to pay earlier investors – a classic Ponzi scheme structure.
Investigators found that Matos presented a fictitious license to prospective investors, falsely claiming Aureus was licensed by the CFTC. This fabricated document included a counterfeit CFTC seal, a forged signature of a former Commissioner, and a made-up license number. Investors received “warranty checks” representing the full amount of their contributions, but these checks were backed by bank accounts with insufficient funds.
The CFTC alleges that limited and unprofitable futures trading occurred, with the majority of investor funds being diverted. Matos reportedly used the misappropriated funds to cover his rent, living expenses, travel, and personal taxes. Furthermore, Aureus and Matos failed to register with the CFTC as a commodity pool operator and associated person, respectively, as required by law.
The CFTC is seeking disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, civil monetary penalties, restitution for investors, a ban on future trading and registration, and a permanent injunction against further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act and CFTC regulations. The case is being handled by Elsie Robinson, Alan Simpson, Alison Auxter, Rachel Hayes, Christopher Reed, and Charles Marvine of the CFTC’s Division of Enforcement.
The CFTC advises the public to verify a company’s registration status before investing and warns of the dangers of unregistered commodity pool offerings. Investors can use NFA BASIC to check registration details.
Source: CFTC.gov
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