STATESBORO, GA – Joseph L. Autry Jr. has been permanently banned from trading commodities and registering with the CFTC following a federal court order issued on February 15, 2012. The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) obtained a summary judgment against Autry and his company, Autry Capital Management LLC (ACM), resolving a 2010 anti-fraud enforcement action.
The court found Autry and ACM guilty of fraud, misappropriation, and issuing false statements in connection with a Ponzi scheme targeting commodity futures customers. Judge B. Avant Edenfield of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia imposed a $1,000 civil monetary penalty in addition to the trading and registration bans.
According to the CFTC, beginning in 2008, Autry solicited over $265,000 from seven customers, promising to trade commodity futures contracts through ACM. However, Autry allegedly misused the funds, diverting portions to cover personal debts and expenses. A significant amount of the invested funds were lost through trading, and Autry further compounded the fraud by issuing falsified account statements to investors, falsely indicating profits. The scheme involved using funds from newer investors to pay returns to earlier investors, a hallmark of Ponzi schemes.
This civil judgment follows a related criminal conviction. On July 21, 2011, Autry was sentenced to 27 months in prison and ordered to pay $155,200 in restitution to his defrauded customers. The case was prosecuted as U.S. v. Autry, case number 6:10-cr-22, document 32, in the Southern District of Georgia.
The CFTC acknowledged the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia and the Federal Bureau of Investigation in bringing the case to resolution. The CFTC’s enforcement team included Linda Y. Peng, David W. MacGregor, Michael McLaughlin, Lenel Hickson, Jr., Stephen J. Obie, and Vincent A. McGonagle.
Source: CFTC.gov
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