Robert Stanley Harrison of Easley, South Carolina, has been permanently banned from trading commodities after being found guilty of operating a fraudulent investment scheme. The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced a Consent Order on December 23, 2014, resolving charges against Harrison for running a fraudulent futures and off-exchange foreign currency pool through his company, Investors Choice Advisors LLC (ICA).
The charges stem from a CFTC complaint filed in February 2013, alleging that Harrison fraudulently solicited funds, made false statements, and misappropriated money from June 2011 to February 2013. Harrison, acting as an unregistered Commodity Pool Operator (CPO), allegedly guaranteed investors both principal protection and 100 percent profits within 60 to 90 days. False investment contracts were reportedly issued to support these claims.
In May 2013, Harrison was criminally indicted on charges related to the same conduct. He later pleaded guilty and, on September 22, 2014, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison, and ordered to pay restitution to his victims. The CFTC noted the court in the criminal case had already addressed restitution, and therefore did not order additional restitution in this civil action.
The court imposed a civil monetary penalty of $275,000 against Harrison. In addition to the penalty and prison sentence, the order permanently bans Harrison from trading and registering with the CFTC. A motion to finalize this permanent industry ban is currently pending before the court. The CFTC collaborated with the Office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of South Carolina on the case.
The CFTC encourages anyone with information about potential commodity trading violations to contact the Division of Enforcement via toll-free hotline at 866-FON-CFTC or submit a tip online.
Source: CFTC.gov
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