Release: 5800-10
For Release: March 25, 2010

Georgia-Based Hedge Fund Lake Dow and its Principal, Ty Edwards, Ordered to Pay More than $4 million in Restitution and Penalties in CFTC Commodity Pool Fraud Action

Washington, DC - The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) obtained more than $4 million in restitution and civil monetary penalties in an order entered by the U.S. District Court for the Northern Division of Georgia against defendants Lake Dow Capital, LLC (Lake Dow) and Ty Edwards, both of McDonough, Ga., in CFTC v. Lake Dow, LLC, et al., a CFTC enforcement action filed in October 2005 (see CFTC Press Release 5135-05, October 24, 2005). 

The CFTC’s complaint charged Lake Dow and Edwards with committing fraud in operating the Aurora Investment Fund, a commodity pool and hedge fund. Specifically, the CFTC charged that the defendants fraudulently solicited more than $26 million from customers and misappropriated customer funds. At the same time the complaint was filed, the court entered an order freezing more than $19 million of the defendants’ assets. The receiver appointed in this matter, S. Gregory Hays, was able to return more than $19 million to the pool participants.

On March 23, 2010, Judge Clarence Cooper entered a supplemental consent order requiring Lake Dow and Edwards to pay, jointly and severally, $2,282,258 in restitution and $1,879,156 in civil monetary penalties. 

A prior consent order of permanent injunction, entered by the court on January 31, 2007, permanently bars Lake Dow and Edwards from engaging in any commodity-related activity, seeking registration or claiming exemption from registration with the CFTC and/or engaging in any activity requiring such registration or exemption from registration with the CFTC.

The following CFTC staff members are responsible for this case: Tracey Wingate, John Dunfee, Mary Kaminski, Paul Hayeck and Joan Manley.

Media Contacts
Scott Schneider
202-418-5080

Dennis Holden
202-418-5088

Last Updated: April 2, 2010