Quatloos! > Investment Fraud > FOREX Scams > Erxleben Sentenced to Prison

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 18, 2000

RUSSELL ALLEN ERXLEBEN SENTENCED TO FEDERAL PRISON

(AUSTIN, TEXAS) United States District Judge James Nowlin this morning sentenced 43-year-old RUSSELL ALLEN ERXLEBEN to 84 months in federal prison for implementing a scheme to defraud over 500 investors of his Austin based company, Austin Forex International (AFI). Erxleben was also fined $1,000,000.00. In addition, Erxleben was ordered to pay $28,056,860.99 in restitution.

On November 22, 1999, Erxleben pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and one count of securities fraud. In his plea, Erxleben admitted that he conducted his fraudulent scheme between March 1998 and September 1998. Erxleben also admitted that in securing investors for his foreign currency-trading business, he provided them with fraudulent company records and made false statements and promises to them including promises they would obtain profits in excess of 100%. Erxleben intentionally misled his investors by claiming he was a nationally recognized foreign currency trader who would provide a significant return–from 3 to 7 percent monthly–on their investments. Erxleben’s scheme involved using initial investments of "new" clients to satisfy the monies owed to existing investors. Erxleben further admitted that he regularly reported phantom profits to his investors while in reality, AFI and it’s clients incurred $18 Million in trading losses over a six-month period beginning in January 1998.

This case was investigated by the Criminal Investigation Division of the Internal Revenue Service together with the Texas Securities Board and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Dan Mills is prosecuting this case on behalf of the Government.

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