WASHINGTON, D.C. – James Giacomo Brandolino, formerly of Joliet, Illinois, has been permanently banned from trading commodities after admitting to orchestrating a multi-million dollar fraud and misappropriating customer funds, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced on February 27, 2012.
Brandolino was charged with running fraudulent commodity futures investment schemes from at least July 2006 through January 2011. He solicited approximately $3.6 million from investors, including family, friends, and members of his community, for managed accounts and commodity futures pools he operated. The CFTC found that Brandolino misled investors about the performance of these pools, issuing false statements that concealed significant trading losses and misrepresented the true value of their investments.
According to the CFTC order, Brandolino misappropriated roughly $1 million of the $3.6 million in investor funds for personal use. He lost another $781,000 trading futures contracts and used approximately $1.3 million to repay earlier investors – a hallmark of a Ponzi scheme. The misused funds were spent on luxury items, including a BMW and a Rolex watch, as well as a down payment on a condominium in Greece.
As part of the settlement with the CFTC, Brandolino is required to pay a $1 million civil monetary penalty and is permanently prohibited from trading on or with any CFTC-registered entity. He is also barred from applying for registration with the CFTC in the future.
In a related criminal case brought by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois on January 18, 2011, Brandolino was charged with mail fraud. He pleaded guilty on August 9, 2011, and is currently incarcerated awaiting sentencing.
The CFTC’s enforcement team included David Chu, Lindsey Evans, Mary Beth Spear, Ava M. Gould, Scott Williamson, Rosemary Hollinger, and Richard B. Wagner.
Source: CFTC.gov
Related Federal Cases
- Letitia James, Securities Fraud, New York 2023 · Washington
- Orlando James Currey, Conspiracy to Commit Mail and Wire Fraud, IL,… · Illinois
- Letitia James Defends Sanctuary City Laws, New York NY, 2023 · New York
- Letitia James, Embezzlement, New York 2023 · New York
- Letitia James Demands Senate KOSA, New York NY, 2024 · New York
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
US NewsUS NewsUS NewsUS News