The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed and simultaneously settled charges against Timothy Michael Murphy of Redding, Connecticut, and his New York-based company, Centurion Global Capital Management LLC (CGCM), for fraudulently soliciting at least 40 customers to participate in a commodity pool.

The CFTC’s order requires Murphy and CGCM jointly and severally to pay both a USD140,000 civil monetary penalty and restitution of USD220,000. The order also permanently prohibits CGCM and prohibits Murphy for a five-year period from trading on a CFTC-registered entity and from registering or seeking exemption from CFTC registration.

The order finds that between about May 2009 and January 2010, CGCM, through Murphy, used a promotional sheet to solicit participants for their commodity pool, Centurion Multi-Strategy LP, that Murphy knew contained false and/or misleading information regarding the trading performance history of one of the two Commodity Trading Advisors that were to trade the pool’s futures accounts. Murphy sent and/or caused this fraudulent promotional sheet to be sent by email and other means to at least 40 pool participants, the order finds. From about September 2009 through July 2010, Murphy received approximately USD220,000 from CGCM from the fees and commissions generated by the Centurion pool, according to the order. The Centurion pool was liquidated in or about July 2010, and the remaining funds were returned to pool participants, the order further finds.

The CFTC thanks the National Futures Association (NFA) and the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA) for their assistance.

CFTC Division of Enforcement staff members responsible for this case are Joseph Rosenberg, Mark A Picard, Sheila Marhamati, Philip Rix, Steven I Ringer, Lenel Hickson, Stephen J Obie, and Vincent A McGonagle.