BOSTON, MA – November 12, 2013 – Lyndon Parrilla of California has been ordered to pay over $17 million in restitution and penalties for defrauding over 50 customers in a foreign currency (forex) scheme, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced today.
Judge Joseph L. Tauro of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts issued a final judgment on October 24, 2013, requiring Parrilla to pay $4,197,342 in restitution to defrauded customers, $3,353,925 in disgorgement, and a $10 million civil monetary penalty. The order also permanently bans Parrilla from trading and registering with the CFTC, and prohibits further violations of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) and related regulations.
The case originated from a CFTC complaint filed on April 12, 2011, alleging fraud, misappropriation, and CEA violations. Parrilla and his company, Green Tree Capital, fraudulently solicited over $4 million from customers between October 2009 and April 2011, promising profits through off-exchange forex trading. However, the court found that Green Tree incurred trading losses from its inception and that approximately 80 percent of customer funds were never actually traded or invested.
According to the court’s findings, Parrilla misappropriated over $3.3 million of customer funds for personal expenses, including gambling in Las Vegas, vehicle and clothing purchases, and cash withdrawals. He then concealed these actions by sending false account statements to customers. Parrilla also misrepresented his experience and failed to disclose a permanent ban from the National Futures Association (NFA).
In addition to the CFTC’s civil enforcement action, Parrilla was sentenced to 97 months in prison and ordered to pay $4,675,156 in restitution following a parallel criminal case brought by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in November 2012.
The CFTC acknowledged the assistance of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Massachusetts in this matter.
Source: CFTC.gov
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