The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has announced entering a consent order in an enforcement action against Abner Alejandro Tinoco and his company, Kikit & Mess Investments, LLC.
According to the US watchdog, the self-styled investment firm and its owner misappropriated $7.2 million from investors who intended to trade forex or cryptocurrency in managed accounts. CFTC’s order imposes injunctive relief, including bans relating to trading and registration.
The regulator finds the defendants liable for fraud and enjoins them from future violations of the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA). The defendants are also permanently banned from trading or registering with the CFTC.
The CFTC found that the fraudulent actions of the defendants began in September 2020. They fraudulently solicited $7.2 million from 322 clients, promising to use the funds to trade forex and cryptocurrency in individual managed accounts.
According to the regulator, Tinoco and his company, Kikit & Mess Investments did not trade their clients’ money as represented. Instead, the funds were used to pay for Tinoco’s personal expenses, such as the travel costs for chartering a private jet, the purchase of a luxury mansion and other real estate, and the purchase or lease of luxury automobiles. Some of the money were also used to pay bogus “investment profits” to clients, like in a Ponzi scheme.
Earlier in February, CFTC filed charges for fraud and misappropriation of more than $19 million involving futures, forex and options against The W Trade Group LLC, Larry Ramos Mendoza and Joseph Carvajales.
