SEC Brings Emergency Action related to Spartan Trading Company, LLC

The Securities and Exchange Commission has made an announcement regarding the recent developments in the legal proceedings related to Spartan Trading Company, LLC (Spartan Trading), a fraudulent pooled investment fund. On June 30, 2023, the Honorable Jerry W. Blackwell of the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota issued an Order in response to the SEC’s Emergency Motion for Ancillary Relief. This Order includes provisions for an asset freeze and the preservation of records, effectively safeguarding the interests of the involved parties.

The SEC’s complaint, which was filed on June 29, 2023, alleges that Spartan Trading, founded in 2019 by Richard Myre, Dale Dahmen, and Dominick Dahmen, fraudulently collected more than $3.7 million from investors. According to the complaint, Myre and the Dahmens lured investors into Spartan Trading by promoting pooled day trading, assuring them that Myre would handle the fund’s investments and that investors would receive a fifty percent share of the profits. However, the complaint asserts that Spartan Trading was a deceptive operation, with Myre making only a few actual investments, most of which resulted in losses. Additionally, the complaint alleges that Myre and the Dahmens withdrew over $1.9 million from Spartan Trading accounts, gradually depleting investor funds. The SEC’s complaint reveals that Spartan Trading’s fraudulent activities began to unravel in late 2022. In February 2023, a meeting was held to discuss the fund’s organization and activities. Tragically, after the meeting, Myre and the Dahmens were discovered deceased in a pickup truck in Bloomington, Minnesota, with local police reporting their deaths as a murder-suicide stemming from a business dispute.

The SEC’s complaint asserts that Spartan Trading and Myre violated Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, and Rule 10b-5. Furthermore, the complaint alleges that Myre violated Sections 206(1), 206(2), and 206(4) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, along with Rule 206(4)-8. While the complaint does not accuse Dale or Dominick Dahmen of direct securities law violations, their estates are named as relief defendants due to their receipt of profits from the fraudulent scheme. The SEC’s legal action will proceed against Spartan Trading and the estates of the deceased individuals.

The investigation conducted by the SEC’s Chicago Regional Office was carried out by Lee Farsnworth and Larry Brannon under the supervision of C.J. Kerstetter.