Miami, FL – A Florida man and his company have been slapped with hefty fines and lifetime bans after being found guilty of running a fraudulent precious metals scheme. The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) secured a default judgment against Kelvin Burgos and his firm, K.B. Concepts Group, LLC d/b/a Apex Asset Advisors, LLC, for illegal, off-exchange precious metals transactions.
Judge Cecilia M. Altonaga of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida ordered Burgos and K.B. Concepts to jointly pay $121,591.10 in disgorgement and a $364,773.30 civil monetary penalty. The judgment also permanently prohibits both Burgos and the company from trading, soliciting, or registering, effectively barring them from future involvement in the precious metals market.
The CFTC’s complaint, originally filed in September 2016, alleged that Burgos and K.B. Concepts engaged in leveraged, margined, and financed precious metals transactions without proper registration, operating as an unregistered Futures Commission Merchant (FCM). The court found that between September 2012 and February 2013, K.B. Concepts solicited retail customers into these financed transactions, acting as an FCM without being registered to do so.
Crucially, the court determined that no precious metals were ever actually delivered to customers involved in these leveraged transactions. This violates the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010, which mandates actual delivery of precious metals within 28 days for such transactions to be legal.
The CFTC warns that victims of this scheme may not be fully compensated, as the perpetrators may lack sufficient assets. The agency vows to continue pursuing legal action against fraudulent actors and protecting commodity trading customers. Individuals with information about suspected fraud are encouraged to contact the CFTC via its toll-free hotline or online complaint system.
The case was led by CFTC Division of Enforcement staff members Michael Loconte, Erica Bodin, James A. Garcia, Michael Solinsky, and Rick Glaser.
Source: CFTC.gov
Related Federal Cases
- Orlando Pascual Jr., HIV Treatment Medicare Fraud, Miami FL, 2023 · Florida
- Juan A. Tony Marrero, Medicare Fraud Scheme, Miami FL, 2023 · Florida
- Juan A. Tony Marrero, Medicare Fraud Scheme, Miami FL, 2024 · Florida
- Alton Plunkett, Tax Fraud, New York NY, 2023 · Florida
- Letitia James Charged 5 RCI Execs with Tax Fraud and Bribery, New Y… · Arkansas
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
US NewsUS NewsUS NewsUS News