Tracy Lee Thomas, a resident of Charlottesville, Virginia, and his firm Marbury Advisors Inc., are facing charges of commodity futures fraud following a civil enforcement action filed by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on March 25, 2016, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina.
The CFTC alleges that Thomas, operating under multiple aliases including Treyton L. Thomas, Trayton L. Thomas, Trey Thomas, Tray Thomas, and T.L. Thomas, fraudulently obtained over $1.2 million from at least two customers between February 2011 and August 2012. The scheme involved misrepresentations about how the funds would be invested.
According to the complaint, Thomas falsely told customers their money would be used to purchase Treasury Bills (T-Bills). Instead, he diverted the funds to trade commodity futures contracts, specifically the Chicago Mercantile Exchange E-mini S&P 500 futures and the Chicago Board of Trade 2-Year Treasury Note futures contracts. He also failed to disclose the substantial risks associated with commodity futures trading, including the potential for total loss of funds.
The CFTC further alleges that Thomas provided fabricated bank statements to one customer, falsely indicating the funds were invested in Treasury Bills when, in reality, they were being used for commodity futures trading within Marbury’s account. The complaint states that nearly all of the customers’ funds were lost through these trades.
The CFTC is seeking restitution, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, civil monetary penalties, permanent trading and registration bans, and a permanent injunction against further violations of federal commodities laws. The agency also acknowledged the assistance of the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority in the investigation.
Customers who suspect fraud are encouraged to contact the CFTC via its toll-free hotline at 866-FON-CFTC (866-366-2382) or submit a tip or complaint online.
Source: CFTC.gov
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