Prosecutors have scored a win in their latest criminal spoofing trial, United States v. Vorley. After three days of deliberation—during which time the jury repeatedly informed the court that it was deadlocked—the jury has convicted precious metals traders James Vorley and Cedric Chanu of committing wire fraud. At the same time, the jury rejected the government’s allegations that the defendants had participated in a criminal conspiracy by allegedly coordinating spoofed trades with other market participants.
The inconsistent verdicts on wire fraud and conspiracy will almost certainly put the defendants on the path to an appeal before the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. To convict Vorley and Chanu on the wire fraud counts, the government was required to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that they knowingly and intentionally participated in a scheme to defraud other market participants by making materially false representations. And at a high level, a conspiracy is an agreement between two or more persons to accomplish an unlawful purpose. The jury’s split verdict suggests there could have been some confusion surrounding the intent requirements for the charges at issue. This could further implicate the manner in which the government presented its evidence at trial and the instructions provided to jurors before they went into deliberations.
Continue Reading Jury Convicts on Wire Fraud Charges in Criminal Spoofing Case
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