Silver Law Group Investigates Double Eagle Enterprises LLC and Eric Arlt for Precious Metals Fraud

Boca Raton, Florida – May 22, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) – Silver Law Group (www.silverlaw.com) is investigating claims against Charlevoix, Michigan-based Double Eagle Enterprises LLC and its owner, Eric Arlt, and potential third parties for their suspected operation of a fraudulent precious metals investment scheme.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission entered an Order imposing against Double Eagle Enterprises LLC, Double Eagle Metals (collectively “Double Eagle”), and Mr. Arlt a monetary penalty of $100,000 as well as a restitution award of $611,154 to be paid to defrauded investors for fraud in operating an off-exchange precious metals investment scam and for failing to register as a Futures Commission Merchant (FCM) with the CFTC, as required. The Order also imposes upon Arlt and Double Eagle a permanent ban on trading on or pursuant to the rules of any CFTC registered entity.

According to the CFTC Order, Arlt and Double Eagle — from at least July 2011 to May 2013 — telephonically solicited retail customers to engage in off-exchange financed precious metals transactions. Each investor was told that to purchase a certain amount of metal, the customer would only need to deposit a small percentage of the total metal value, while Double Eagle would arrange for the customer to receive a loan for the remaining percentage.

The CFTC Order states that financed, off-exchange transactions with retail customers have been illegal since July 2011, when certain amendments of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 became effective. Because Double Eagle/Arlt’s transactions were done off-exchange with customers who were not eligible contract participants, the CFTC found that they were illegal.

The Order further states that Double Eagle acted as an FCM by soliciting and accepting customers’ orders for financed precious metals transactions — in this case, collecting over $1 million from those customers, many of whom were not eligible contract participants — despite not being registered as an FCM. Double Eagle’s unregistered activity in this regard is unlawful, and the company was sanctioned accordingly.

If you have invested more than $500,000 in precious metals and believe you are the victim of a fraud or a theft of your assets, you might have the grounds upon which to assert a claim to recover your losses. Silver Law Group is a nationally-recognized securities law firm headquartered in South Florida, with satellite offices in New York and Washington, D.C., representing investors worldwide with their claims for losses due to financial misconduct and investment firm negligence in securities litigation and arbitration matters including FINRA and NFA arbitrations. Scott L. Silver and David C. Silver both have Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Ratings™ of “AV” Preeminent for achieving the highest ethical and legal standards. The firm has successfully recovered multi-million dollar awards for its clients through NFA arbitration, FINRA arbitration, and the courts. To contact Scott L. Silver to discuss your legal matter, call toll-free (800) 975-4345 or e-mail him at SSilver@silverlaw.com.