The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has commended the US Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia for the successful prosecution of Ted James Johnson of Pearisburg, Virg
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has commended the US Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Virginia for the successful prosecution of Ted James Johnson of Pearisburg, Virginia for defrauding investors in a commodity pool.
Following an almost three-week jury trial, Johnson was found guilty on 37 criminal counts in the US District Court for the Western District of Virginia in Roanoke in connection with the operation of an illegal commodity pool.
CFTC staff assisted the US attorney’s office and provided expert testimony in the prosecution of Johnson for commodity pool fraud, embezzlement of commodity pool funds, and acting as an unregistered commodity pool operator.
The jury found Johnson guilty of several counts under the Commodity Exchange Act including fraud by a commodity pool operator, embezzlement of commodity pool funds, acting as an unregistered commodity pool operator, in addition to other criminal counts including mail fraud, wire fraud, money laundering and securities fraud.
In July 2007, Johnson and his partner, Frank Graham Farrier, were charged with 42 criminal counts in connection with a multi-million dollar Ponzi scheme related to commodity futures. Contrary to their representations to investors, instead of using the money to trade commodity futures contracts, many investors’ funds were used by Johnson and Farrier to make payments to other investors.
Earlier this month, Farrier pleaded guilty to two counts of mail fraud, one count of money laundering conspiracy, one count of securities fraud, and one count of being an unregistered commodity pool operator, and agreed to forfeiture of his assets.
The maximum penalty faced by Johnson and Farrier when the sentencing hearing is held is 85 years imprisonment and a fine of more than USD4.5m million.
