Emerald Accused of Stealing in Currency Case

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has accused a City of Industry firm and two of its executives of stealing $4.7 million from customers who were told their money would be used to buy and sell foreign currencies.

Emerald Worldwide Holdings Inc., Jian Zhuang of City of Industry and Jan Lu Hao of Rowland Heights were named as defendants in the complaint, which was filed Nov. 17 in federal district court in Los Angeles. A judge froze assets of all three defendants, the commission said.

The complaint alleges that Emerald, Hao and Zhuang defrauded at least 300 customers since March 2002. The money wasn’t traded on behalf of customers and was deposited in bank accounts controlled by Hao and Zhuang, both of whom have represented themselves to be the company’s chief executive, the complaint said.

Emerald had falsely said on its Web site and in marketing materials that it was registered with the commission, the complaint said. The commission is seeking a return of the stolen money and fines for each violation of law.

A call to Emerald Worldwide wasn’t answered. Phone numbers for the accused individuals aren’t listed in the cities mentioned by the commission. Phone messages left for Paul Cass, Hao’s lawyer, and Albert Lum, who represents Zhuang and Emerald Worldwide, weren’t immediately returned.

Since December 2000, the commission has filed at least 55 currency-trading fraud cases, including six last month that were part of a federal crackdown that led to the arrest of 47 people. The complaints involve more than $260 million taken from about 5,600 people, according to figures on its Web site.