http://archive.is/Jn6oO

Traders Beware: U.S. taps new tools to find fraud in volatile commodities market

Reuters

>The Justice Department fraud division is beefing up with the creation of a sub-unit specializing in combating commodities fraud overseen by Avi Perry, a trial attorney who has prosecuted high-profile cases involving trading powerhouse Tower Research Capital, Merrill Lynch Commodities Inc, and the ongoing JPMorgan probe, according to two sources.

>The unit is part of a broader Justice Department initiative to dramatically expand the scope of market manipulation the agency targets for criminal prosecutions, beyond traditional insider trading and futures manipulation into a range of asset classes, sources told Reuters.

>The effort, if successful, raises the stakes for traders with potential jail-time, while banks, brokers and prop trading firms could face chunky fines and business curbs as the agency gets better at detecting potential misconduct across institutions.

tl;dr - DOJ leaked they’re going after JPMorgan and others for precious metal manipulations. Non-bank/traders watchers of the PM space allege the big banks (JPMC, Scotia, etc.) have been surprising the true price of PMs and note the fact the DOJ leaked this story is a clear shot across the bow, particularly at Chase.