Prosecutors: Trader indicted on fraud charges caused $13M loss

A Chicago futures trader has been charged with fraud for a scheme that caused more than $13 million in losses to clients.

Thomas Lindstrom, 48, is accused of operating a fraud scheme that made it appear that his firm, Rock Capital Markets LLC, was profitable when he was actually making trades that were losing the firm money, according to a statement from the U.S. attorney’s office.

His scheme caused a loss of at least $13 million and the collapse of Rock Capital, while netting him $285,000 in compensation over a six-month period in 2014 and 2015, prosecutors allege.

A federal jury indicted Lindstrom on Thursday on four counts of commodities fraud and four counts of wire fraud, prosecutors said. Each count of commodities fraud is punishable by up to 25 years in prison, while each count of wire fraud carries a maximum sentence of 20 years.