Florida Man Accused of Defrauding Law Enforcement Officers
The Securities and Exchange Commission is accusing a Florida man of defrauding at least 18 investors (many of whom were current or former law enforcement members) of hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The agency filed the complaint in federal court in Florida against Michael D. Williams and his business, Check Mate Investments (CMI) Capital, alleging that Williams lied to investors when soliciting them to invest in two funds he controlled.
In total, Williams raised about $860,000, according to the commission, with SEC Miami Regional Office Director Stephanie N. Moot claiming that he tricked investors by sending them “cropped screenshots of graphics that showed exorbitant trading profits.”
According to the complaint, between October 2023 and August 2024, Williams (who was never registered) solicited investments for two CMI Funds he never incorporated. He claimed the funds would trade in stock options, crypto assets and S&P 500 equities.
Williams would use phone calls, texts, emails, in-person meetings and social media to solicit investors. Many of the law-enforcement victims purportedly trusted Williams because of his work with a West Palm Beach-based police and firefighter pension plan administrator, and he often asked them to refer friends and family (many of whom were not accredited investors).
“(The) defendants held themselves out as accomplished traders with a ‘proven’ strategy, boasted of extraordinary returns, and Williams painted himself as the picture of success—often bragging about purchasing luxury vehicles and high-end watches,” the complaint read. “In reality, Defendants had no proven trading strategy, and Williams had a personal history of significant trading losses.”
The SEC claimed Williams told investors he’d manage the funds with little risk using a strategy that generated year-over-year returns exceeding 187%, but in reality, he never opened a brokerage account for CMI Capital; he based his claims on his personal trading history, which was consistently marked by year-over-year losses.
Meanwhile, Williams would allegedly send investors fake profits and portfolio values in monthly reports or on social media. To trick investors, he would often post cropped screenshots of returns he’d made on a practice trading platform to a Facebook group chat for CMI Capital investors.
Meanwhile, he used about 45% of the total funds for his own use, including credit card and mortgage payments, cash withdrawals, a high-end sports car, luxury car rentals, jewelry, luxury goods, vacations, restaurants and medical spa treatments.
But in August 2024, investors realized the fund returns Williams touted were from a simulated trading account, and began questioning his assertions. According to the commission, he attempted to offer repayment to some investors, and to date, he’s returned at least $375,000 of investor funds (largely using funds provided by his family).
In settling some of the charges, Williams agreed to a forthcoming associational bar, as well as disgorgement and further civil penalties to be decided at a later point. Williams could not be immediately reached for comment.
