Members of the public should protect themselves by taking a close look at firms that tout a quick buck with little risk, especially firms that claim to use unfamiliar overseas firms to finance their investments and store precious metals and other commodities on their behalf. The financing firm then purportedly purchases and holds the commodities on behalf of the IMC Common Enterprise customers, according to the complaint. When decreases in the price of a commodity or accumulating credit and storage fees cause a customer s equity to drop below a specified level, the customer must pay additional money to return his or her equity to a specified level, the complaint alleges. IMC Common Enterprise telemarketers claim they will monitor the market and instruct customers when they should liquidate their accounts for a profit, according to the complaint. It is only after customers send their funds to the IMC Common Enterprise, the complaint alleges, that customers receive account opening forms and documents purporting to disclose risks inherent in the investment scheme.
Customers consistently lose the bulk of the funds they invest, according to the complaint.
Finally, according to the CFTC complaint, the defendants also have engaged in an elaborate ruse to keep their current whereabouts secret. Defendants claim that they are currently operating out of the Bahamas, instruct customers to call them at a Bahamas telephone number and to send investment checks to a Bahamas address, and send account statements to customers from the Bahamas, the complaint alleges. The complaint further alleges that, in fact, defendants operate from a location in Charlotte, North Carolina. In its continuing litigation against the defendants, the CFTC is seeking preliminary and permanent civil injunctions in addition to other remedial relief including restitution to customers. The California Department of Justice Telephonic Sellers Unit, the Securities Division of the Office of the Secretary of State for the State of Nevada, the Nevada Department of Business and Industry Division of Consumer Affairs, the Iowa Department of Justice, Securities Bureau, the United States Customs Service, and the Federal Trade Commission also provided valuable assistance to the CFTC during the investigation of this matter.