A former dealer who served as a monetary counselor with the U.S. Military and was a serious within the U.S. Military Reserve, has been indicted by the Justice Division for allegedly defrauding two dozen Gold Star families, in accordance with Philip R. Sellinger, U.S. legal professional for the District of New Jersey, and courtroom paperwork.
As well as, the agency he most lately labored with has been expelled by the Monetary Trade Regulatory authority for violations of Regulation Greatest Curiosity.
Caz Craffy (aka “Carz Craffey”) of Colts Neck, New Jersey, was charged with six counts of wire fraud and one depend every of securities fraud, making false statements in a mortgage utility, committing acts furthering a private monetary curiosity, and making false statements to a federal company.
In keeping with paperwork filed in the case and statements made in courtroom, from Could 2018 to November 2022, Craffy obtained almost $10 million from Gold Star households to put money into accounts he managed in his personal capability. As soon as in charge of their cash, Craffy repeatedly executed trades, typically with out the household’s authorization.
For Craffy, 41, the unauthorized trades resulted in excessive commissions. Through the timeframe of the alleged scheme, the accounts of the Gold Star households misplaced roughly $3.6 million, whereas Craffy personally earned greater than $1.4 million in commissions, drawn from the household accounts.
“Stealing from Gold Star households whose family members made the last word sacrifice in service to our nation is a shameful crime,” Lawyer Basic Merrick B. Garland mentioned in a press release.
Craffy — completely prohibited from affiliation with any member of FINRA in December — was scheduled to make his preliminary look on Friday earlier than Tonianne J. Bongiovanni, U.S. Justice of the Peace Decide, on the Trenton Federal Courthouse.
Gold Star Households
When a member of the U.S. Armed Companies dies throughout lively obligation, their surviving beneficiary, now a member of a Gold Star household, is entitled to a $100,000 demise gratuity and the soldier’s life insurance coverage of as much as $400,000.
These funds are sometimes disbursed in a number of weeks or months following the servicemember’s demise. To help the beneficiaries on this time of want, the navy supplies a number of companies to the servicemember’s household, together with the help of a monetary counselor.
From November 2017 to January 2023, Craffy was a civilian worker of the Military, working as a monetary counselor with the Casualty Help Workplace. He was additionally a serious within the Military Reserve, the place he has been enlisted since 2003.
Craffy was liable for offering basic monetary training to surviving beneficiaries and was prohibited from providing any private opinions relating to advantages selections, in accordance with Sellinger.
He was not permitted to take part personally in any authorities matter during which he had an outdoor monetary curiosity, Sellinger famous.
However, with out informing the Military, Craffy concurrently maintained exterior employment with two separate monetary funding corporations: Newbridge Securities after which Monmouth Capital Administration, in accordance with his report on FINRA’s BrokerCheck web site.
Craffy used his place as an Military monetary counselor to determine and goal Gold Star households and different navy households, Sellinger mentioned. He inspired the households to take a position their survivor advantages in funding accounts he managed in his exterior, personal employment.
Based mostly on Craffy’s false representations and omissions, the overwhelming majority of the Gold Star households mistakenly believed that Craffy’s administration of their cash was carried out on behalf of and with the Military’s authorization.
