Release: #4105-98 (97 Civ 5255)

For Release: February 12, 1998

NEW YORK COURT ISSUES PRELIMINARY INJUNCTIONS AGAINST WILLIAM SANCHEZ
    AND BRIAN WILLIS IN CFTC ANTI-FRAUD ENFORCEMENT ACTION, WHICH ALSO CHARGES
    WORLDWIDE COMMODITIES LTD. AND TEMPLER INTERNATIONAL LTD.

Defendants Allegedly Solicited Approximately $4 Million from More
    Than 300 Customers Nationwide and Misappropriated About $1 Million of
    Customer Funds

WASHINGTON -- The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) announced
    today that on January 27, 1998, Judge Miriam Goldman Cedarbaum of the U.S.
    District Court for the Southern District of New York entered an order of
    preliminary injunction against William Sanchez of Staten Island, New
    York, and Brian Willis of New York, N.Y.

The court's order stems from a five-count CFTC civil anti-fraud
    enforcement action filed under seal on July 17, 1997, alleging that Worldwide Commodities Ltd. (of Nassau, Bahamas); Templer
    International, Ltd. (of New York, New York); and Sanchez and Willis,
    presidents of Worldwide and Templer, respectively, violated sections 4b(a),
    4m(1), 4o(1) and 9(a)(10) of the Commodity Exchange Act, by making
    false and misleading representations in soliciting customers purportedly to
    trade in the spot foreign currency market, by converting customer funds to
    their own personal and business uses, and acting as an unregistered
    Commodity Pool Operator and Commodity Trading Advisor. Specifically, the
    defendants allegedly misappropriated approximately $1 million out of
    approximately $4 million solicited from more than 300 customers nationwide,
    according to the complaint. (See CFTC News Release 4050-97, September 8,
    1997.)

Judge Cedarbaum's order preliminarily restrains and enjoins Sanchez and
    Willis from soliciting or accepting any clients or participants, or
    deposits of funds, for commodity futures or options trading; giving advice
    on commodity futures or options trading; operating a commodity pool;
    engaging in commodity futures or options trading; or acting in any capacity
    that requires registration with the CFTC.

The order further preliminarily restrains and enjoins Sanchez and Willis
    from failing to inform customers and prospective customers that their funds
    will be traded on or subject to the rules of a contact market; failing to
    inform customers and prospective customers of the risks inherent in trading
    futures or options; making misleading statements regarding the profit
    potential of trading futures or options; misappropriating customer funds;
    and cheating or defrauding, or attempting to cheat or defraud any person in
    connection with any commodity futures or options trading.

In its continuing litigation, the CFTC is seeking, among other remedial
    relief, permanent injunctions prohibiting the defendants from violating
    federal commodity law and CFTC regulations as charged, restitution to
    allegedly defrauded customers, the imposition of civil penalties in an
    amount of not more than the higher of $100,000 or triple the monetary gain
    to each defendant for each violation of the CEA or CFTC regulation.