MIAMI, FL – Federal regulators have filed a civil enforcement action against Larry Ramos Mendoza of Miami, Florida, alleging a multi-million dollar fraud scheme targeting futures, forex, and options customers. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) filed the complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida on February 7, 2022.
The CFTC alleges that Mendoza, operating through his company The W Trade Group LLC, misappropriated over $19 million from at least 220 customers between June 2013 and June 2020. The complaint details a scheme where false account statements were electronically sent to customers, falsely indicating profitable trading activity where none existed.
Joseph Carvajales, also of Miami, is named in the complaint, accused of fraudulently soliciting customers by making false claims about a “sophisticated trading algorithm” and limited risk. Carvajales allegedly worked in conjunction with Mendoza and The W Trade Group to perpetrate the fraud.
The CFTC is seeking restitution, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, civil monetary penalties, and trading and registration bans against Mendoza, The W Trade Group, and Carvajales. The agency also requests injunctions to prevent further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and related CFTC regulations.
The Division of Enforcement at the CFTC acknowledged the assistance of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida in the ongoing investigation. The case is being led by CFTC staff members Kevin Samuel, Eugenia Vroustouris, Alison B. Wilson, and Rick Glaser.
The CFTC urges the public to verify a company’s registration status before investing and provides resources on its website to help identify and report potential fraud. A toll-free hotline (866-FON-CFTC) and online tip submission tools are also available for reporting suspicious activity.
Source: CFTC.gov
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