A Chicago federal jury found two former employees of Deutsche Bank, a global financial institution, guilty today of fraud charges for their respective roles in fraudulent and manipulative trading practices involving publicly-traded precious metals futures contracts.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Assistant Director in Charge William Sweeney of the FBI’s New York Field Office made the announcement.
After a two-week trial, James Vorley, 42, of the United Kingdom, and Cedric Chanu, 40, of France and the United Arab Emirates, were convicted of three counts and seven counts, respectively, of wire fraud affecting a financial institution. Sentencing has been scheduled for Jan. 21, 2021, before U.S. District Judge John J. Tharp, Jr. of the Northern District of Illinois, who presided over the trial.
“Today’s jury verdict shows that those who seek to manipulate our public financial markets through fraud will be held accountable by juries and the department,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian C. Rabbitt of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
According to evidence presented at trial, Vorley and Chanu, who were employed as traders at Deutsche Bank—Vorley based in London; Chanu based in London and Singapore—engaged in a scheme to defraud other traders on the Commodity Exchange Inc., which was an exchange run by the CME Group. The defendants defrauded other traders by placing fraudulent orders that they did not intend to execute in order to create the appearance of false supply and demand and to induce other traders to trade at prices, quantities, and times that they otherwise would not have traded. Specifically, the evidence showed that the defendants engaged in the practice of “spoofing,” which means that they placed orders on the exchange which, at the time the orders were placed, they did not intend to execute, all for the purpose of deceiving other market participants.
This case was investigated by the FBI’s New York Field Office. Deputy Chief Brian Young, Assistant Chief Avi Perry, and Trial Attorney Leslie S. Garthwaite of the Criminal Division’s Fraud Section are prosecuting the case.
Individuals who believe that they may be a victim in this case should visit the Fraud Section’s Victim Witness website for more information.
The year 2020 marks the 150th anniversary of the Department of Justice. Learn more about the history of our agency at www.Justice.gov/Celebrating150Years.
