WASHINGTON – In a civil filing this morning, the U.S. Commodities Futures Trading Commission charges Elizabeth Baldwin of Newport with fraudulently soliciting and obtaining money to invest in a commodity-futures pool.

Baldwin – doing business under her own name and as Newportant Group – “fraudulently solicited and obtained more than $500,000 from members of the general public to invest in a commodity pool,” the CFTC said in a statement.

She allegedly defrauded investors into participating in the trading of E-Mini Standard & Poor’s 500 futures and futures contracts on 10-year notes and 30-year bonds.

Dating back to at least 2004, “Baldwin represented to at least one pool participant that their funds would be pooled for the purpose of trading futures contracts and that the pool had been making monthly profits from 3 to 10 percent,” the CFTC said.

“The complaint further alleges that these statements were false because the pool lost money trading in all but one month.”

The CFTC complaint alleges that “Baldwin fraudulently represented to customers that their funds would be held in segregated trading accounts at futures commission merchants,” but actually maintained accounts in her name only.

“Baldwin fraudulently represented to customers that their funds would be held in segregated trading accounts at futures commission merchants,” the CFTC said.

Based on its complaint, a federal judge – Deborah A. Batts of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York – has issued an order freezing Baldwin’s assets and prohibiting the destruction of business records, the CFTC said.

The commission thanked the National Futures Association, the R.I. State Police, the Newport Police Department and the R.I. Department of Business Regulation for their assistance in this matter.

Baldwin did not immediately respond to a telephone call requesting comment. The CFTC so far has no listing of any attorney of record in the case, an agency spokesman said.

Additional information is available from the U.S. Commodities Futures Trading Commission at www.cftc.gov.