Court Orders Over $51 Million in Penalties and Restitution Against Safeguard Metals and Jeffrey Ikahn for Precious Metals Fraud

The U.S. District Court for the Central District of California has issued a final judgment ordering Safeguard Metals LLC and Jeffrey Ikahn (also known as Jeffrey Santulan and Jeffrey Hill) to pay $25.6 million in restitution to victims and a $25.6 million civil monetary penalty for executing a nationwide precious metals fraud. The court order was secured by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) in joint coordination with 30 state securities regulatory agencies representing the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA). The resolution concludes an enforcement action initially filed in February 2022. Court findings from a prior consent order determined that the defendants took in approximately $68 million from more than 450 investors, most of whom were elderly or near retirement age. The scheme involved luring clients with deceptive claims regarding the risks associated with their standard retirement accounts. Customers were then steered into purchasing silver coins and other precious metals at inflated prices through hidden markups, causing immediate and significant investment losses. The consent order permanently enjoins Safeguard Metals and Ikahn from future violations of the Commodity Exchange Act, CFTC regulations, and state securities laws. The defendants are also permanently banned from trading and from registering with the CFTC and participating state regulators. In a parallel case filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC v. Safeguard Metals), the court ordered an additional $25.6 million in disgorgement and a $25.6 million civil monetary penalty, with payments offset against amounts owed in the CFTC action. Regulators noted that while restitution has been ordered, full fund recovery depends on the availability of defendant assets.