After reading through the first Forward Forex complaint it appears there is much I left out. The material is just too good to pass up so for those who want a second helping of forward forex follies, keep reading.
It appears that Forward Forex's lightening quick CEO, Onelio Murias, is so slippery he evaded the NFA's audit team the first time around because he isn't even listed in the original complaint. The first complaint was issued on June 4th, 2007, and the charges then were leveled solely against Forward Forex and Marshall Wertheim (you'll remember that Wertheim was the sad sack that got left holding the bag after Murias flew the coop in July.)
http://www.nfa.futures.org/BasicNet/...px?seqnum=1192
In any case the original complaint has some hair raising adventures. Nobody commits fraud like the folks at forward forex! Let's skip to page two of the NFA complaint...
"Forward Forex is located in Hollywood, Florida. It has been an NFA Member since January 2006 and began conducting customer business the following month. (Marshall) Wertheim is Forward Forex's President and its only AP. (Curious statement from the NFA considering Murias is listed as being a principal of the firm dating back to 2005.)
4. Forward Forex employed an unregistered entity named F8 Real Estate, Inc. ("F8") to purportedly manage its finances and pay expenses. Forward Forex's association with F8 is, at the very least, suspicious.
5. F8 appears to be owned by Silvia Stambler, who has no registration history in the industry. However, her husband, Andrew Stern ("Stern"), has been for many years affiliated with a number of South Florida brokerage firms and has been named in three disciplinary Complaints issued by this Committee and two Commodity Futures Trading Commission ("CFTC") enforcement actions."
So the starting lineup for Forward Forex is now set. At quarterback we have the fleet footed Onelio Murias. Behind him carrying the rock is tailback Andrew Stern with his wife Silvia Stambler leading the way at fullback. Snapping the ball to Murias is Wertheim. Surrounding Wertheim and blocking up front would be the rest of the employees at Forward Forex. Finally, rounding out this team of criminal all-stars is the receiving corps. You know, the guys who catch all those accounts? And for this position Murias chose to go into the free agency market and sign up a gang of crooked pirates even the old Oakland Raiders would never have employed. They went by the name of the Hamlin Mercer Financial Group. And this gang of high flying, free agents wreaked more havoc on the field then Ted Hendricks, Jack Tatum and Lyle Alzado combined. Here is what the NFA flagged them for:
1) Sold junk options with commissions and spreads so high that 94% of all customers lost their money. The average loss was $21,000 although ten customers lost more than $100,000. Meanwhile the firm was making millions.
2) Used unregistered solicitors who said to one customer that they "had access to information from the government about currency movements that only the biggest banks knew and that Herickoff (customer) had to act immediately if he wanted to have any chance of profiting from this information. Blauch (Solicitor) Also told Herickoff that his account for them was far to small to waste his time on and thus had to add another $25,000 to his account. Also told him his account was making a false return."
3) Used unregistered solicitors who said to one customer that they "never lost money and promised Willingham (customer) large profits. After Willingham invested, Blauch assured him that his account was doing well and had quickly turned a profit. At the account's peak, Blauch told him that it was worth $800,000 and said that they would cash out as high as $1.25 million, after which Blauch would just day trade the remaining profits. Contrary to Blauch's rosy reports, Willingham was actually suffering ruinous losses."
4) Customer Colley attempted to get in touch with Cohen (Solicitor) but was told that Cohen was out of the office with medical problems. Colley reach an individual named Michael Ewan at IMF, who told Colley that his account's value had appreciated to $15,000. Based on Ewan's representation, Colley decided to liquidate his positions and take his profit. However, Colley could not reach anyone at IMF to liquidate his positions, after making repeated calls to IMF. By the time Colley was able to through to someone at IMF, his account had a value of $25.
And on and on it goes. Customers are pressured into sending in their 401k money or to take out second mortgages, which are then promptly flushed down the drain in worthless options contracts. Sales agents are described as harassing, berating and screaming at customers to send in money. One "Customer Service" representative tells a distraught customer who is losing his shirt that their sales agent (who else but the notorious Blauch) can't be reached because he has "had a heart attack" and then finishes the conversation by saying "sorry, but this is the chance you took." And my personal favorite, sales agents throwing chairs across the room in fits of rage.
After reading through this does anyone seriously doubt the NFA is going to raise capital requirements? This is what the NFA has been dealing with on a day to day basis. This is how the forex industry is perceived by many in the financial world. The only way to change that is to flush the bottom feeders, which is precisely what the NFA is about to do. Good riddance.
The Comic Collapse of Forward Forex
Strolling through Maggot Mile
NFA Closes Nations Investments!
Linear Mode
