Tag: Illinois
Jiongsheng Zhao, Spoofing, Illinois 2021
Chicago, IL – Jiongsheng Zhao, a trader based in Australia, has been penalized by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) for engaging in spoofing and manipulation of the Chicago Mercantile Exchange E-mini S&P 500 futures market. The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois entered a consent order on June 4, 2021, resolving…
Valdas Dapkus, Misappropriation Fraud, Illinois 2021
NEWARK, NJ – Valdas Dapkus, of Illinois, faces charges of misappropriation fraud following a civil enforcement action filed by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey on September 29, 2021. The CFTC alleges that Dapkus, along with Tradewale LLC and Tradewale Managed Fund (collectively “Tradewale”),…
Joseph Kim, Crypto Fraud, Illinois 2018
CHICAGO, IL – November 9, 2018 – Joseph Kim, of Phoenix, Arizona, has been ordered to pay over $1.1 million for orchestrating a fraudulent scheme involving Bitcoin and Litecoin, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced today. Kim admitted to misappropriating funds from his former employer, a Chicago-based proprietary trading firm, and subsequently defrauding customers…
Mark R. Slobodnik, Commodity Fraud, Illinois 2018
Libertyville, Illinois – Mark R. Slobodnik has been ordered to pay approximately $370,000 in penalties for his role in a $1.76 million commodity pool fraud, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced December 6, 2018. The case stemmed from the operation of Blue Guru, LLC. Judge Manish Shah of the U.S. District Court for the…
Dro Kholamian, Fraud, Illinois 2018
Barrington, IL – Dro Kholamian, 53, of Barrington, Illinois, is facing charges of fraud following a civil enforcement action filed by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on December 17, 2018. The CFTC alleges Kholamian and his company, Blue Star Trading, LLC, fraudulently solicited over $1.9 million from more than 30 clients, including members of…
Dirk Hugo, Illegal Possession of a Firearm, Illinois 2026
⏱ 2 min read Dirk Hugo, a 49-year-old man from Arlington Heights, IL, was found with a loaded handgun in his waistband and a bulletproof vest in a parking garage on May 1, 2024. This incident occurred just a month after he was involved in an assault at a Glenview, IL motel, where he allegedly…
Anthony J. Caine, Fraud, Illinois 2025
CHICAGO, IL – July 1, 2025 – Anthony J. Caine, 60, of Colorado, and Anish Parvataneni, of Illinois, have been penalized by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois for their roles in a fraudulent scheme involving Chicago-based commodity pool operators LJM Partners Ltd and LJM Management Ltd (collectively, LJM). The Commodity…
Melvin May, Cocaine Trafficking, Illinois 2024
⏱ 2 min read A convicted felon peddled cocaine and guns in Bloomington, Illinois, landing him a 5-year probation stint. Melvin May, 44, sold the illicit goods on five occasions between September 27 and October 25, 2024, netting him $2,000 and 151.8 grams of cocaine, plus two firearms. May, already on probation in McLean County,…
Matthew Kaufman, Child Pornography, Illinois 2026
⏱ 2 min read A monster in plain sight: Matthew Kaufman, 45, of Lena, Illinois, used Snapchat to entice infants and toddlers into creating child porn over a decade-long reign of terror. Kaufman, a registered sex offender since 2008, stored hundreds of videos and images of the abuse on his devices, violating his victims’ trust…
Danny L. Spyker, Sex Crimes, Illinois 2024
⏱ 2 min read A Rockford jury delivered a guilty verdict against Danny L. Spyker, a former Federal Correctional Institute employee who used his power to sexually abuse two male inmates. The abuse went down in March 2024, when Spyker, 42, was working as a cook supervisor at the Thomson prison. U.S. District Judge Sunil…
