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The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced fraud charges against an Illinois investment adviser for stealing more than $200,000 from his clients.

The SEC’s complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court in Chicago, alleges that Marcus Beam of Woodridge, Illinois, acting primarily through a purported investment advisory business known as Chase Private Equity and later called New World Capital, misappropriated money from retail investors that was supposed to be invested in private funds, one of which was called the Chase Private Equity Fund. Instead of investing this money as he stated he would, Beam primarily spent it on his personal and business expenses. According to the complaint, to conceal his misappropriation, Beam sent fraudulent account statements to investors. When they attempted to redeem their investments, Beam did not return any of their money. As alleged, Beam also lied to at least one of his clients by falsely claiming that he held a Series 65 securities license.

The SEC’s Office of Investor Education and Advocacy urges investors to check the background of anyone selling or offering them an investment using the free and simple search tool on investor.gov. See OIEA’s August 14, 2018 Investor Alert for further information: https://www.sec.gov/oiea/investor-alerts-and-bulletins/ia_checkbackground.

The SEC’s complaint charges Beam with violations of the antifraud provisions of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and Sections 206(1), 206(2), and 206(4) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 and Rule 206(4)-8 thereunder. The SEC seeks permanent injunctions, disgorgement, prejudgment interest, and a civil money penalty against Beam.

The SEC’s investigation has been conducted by David Neuman and supervised by David A. Becker of the SEC’s Asset Management Unit. The litigation will be led by Patrick Costello and Mr. Neuman and supervised by Jan Folena. The SEC appreciates the assistance of the Securities Department-Enforcement Division of the Illinois Secretary of State’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the United States Postal Inspector Service, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois.