Benjamin Chouchane, (CRD# 4590169) a former broker for LinkBrokers Derivatives Corp., a unit of London-based ICAP Plc (IAP), pleaded guilty to making millions of dollars by lying about the prices of securities bought and sold for clients as reported in a recent article in Bloomberg Businessweek.
Chouchane was arrested in October along with Marek Leszczynski (CRD# 3018771), another ex-LinkBrokers employee, and was charged by Manhattan prosecutors with scheming to commit securities and wire fraud. He pleaded guilty before a U.S. District Judge to one count of conspiracy. The prosecutors said that Chouchane, Leszczynski, and others misrepresented the prices at which securities were bought and sold, earning their employer illegal profits and bonuses for themselves.
Chouchane was indicted with Leszczynski in December on two counts of conspiracy to commit securities and wire fraud and one count of securities fraud. A third man, Henry Condron (CRD# 4231972), pleaded guilty in October to being part of the scheme.
Court records show Chouchane also agreed to forfeit $5 million earned as proceeds traceable to his crime. Sentencing will be Oct. 24. Chouchane faces a possible five-year prison term.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) alleged in a suit filed in October that the three men and a fourth former LinkBrokers employee, Gregory Reyftmann (CRD# 4645588), illegally took $18.7 million from customers by reporting fake execution prices on more than 36,000 transactions over four years according to the Bloomberg article.
FINRA records show the men all worked for LinkBrokers.
The following appeared on FINRA's BrokerCheck:
Broker Benjamin Chouchane was previously registered with FINRA at the following brokerage firms:
LOUIS CAPITAL MARKETS, LP
CRD# 48013
NEW YORK, NY
04/2011 - 10/2012
LINKBROKERS DERIVATIVES CORPORATION
CRD# 123000
JERSEY CITY, NJ
02/2005 - 01/2011
REFCO SECURITIES, LLC
CRD# 14094
NEW YORK, NY
12/2002 - 02/2005
Broker Marek Leszczynski was previously registered with FINRA at the following brokerage firms:
MADISON CAPITAL MARKETS, INC.
CRD# 139515
MIAMI, FL
04/2011 - 10/2012
LINKBROKERS DERIVATIVES CORPORATION
CRD# 123000
JERSEY CITY, NJ
10/2005 - 12/2010
If you experienced a financial loss due to any of the above brokers with LinkBrokers Derivatives Corp, call Soreide Law Group for a free consultation with an attorney on how to potentially recovery your investment at: 888-760-6552.
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