Fake Fund Returns and a Sports Car: SEC Charges Michael Williams Over Alleged Scheme Hitting Cops and Firefighters

Published Oct. 1, 2026. Case statuses are current as of that date.

Update, Oct. 19, 2026: The court has entered a consent judgment against Michael D. Williams. According to an SEC administrative order dated Oct. 15, 2026, a judgment was entered by consent on Oct. 2, 2026, in the Southern District of Florida case permanently enjoining Williams from future violations of the securities laws charged in the complaint, and on Oct. 15 the SEC barred him from associating with any investment adviser, broker, dealer or other listed regulated entity. Williams consented without admitting the SEC's findings, other than jurisdiction, the entry of the judgment and the order's summary of what the complaint alleged [2]. Disgorgement and civil penalties had been left for the court to decide; we found no ruling on those amounts as of Oct. 19, 2026. This is a civil matter, not a criminal conviction.

On Sept. 23, 2026, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged Michael D. Williams of Port St. Lucie, Florida, and his company CMI Capital, LLC (also known as Check Mate Investments) with an alleged fraudulent investment scheme that raised about $860,000 from at least 18 investors, many of them current or retired South Florida law enforcement officers [1].

Important: These are civil charges. Without admitting the allegations, the defendants consented to proposed judgments that still require court approval. They have not been convicted of a crime in this matter. (Update, Oct. 19, 2026: the court entered the consent judgment against Williams on Oct. 2, 2026 [2]; entry of the judgment against CMI Capital has not been confirmed.)

How the alleged scheme worked

1. Trust from the day job. Investors allegedly trusted Williams because he worked for a third-party police and firefighter pension plan administrator [1].
2. Inflated fund story. From at least October 2023 through August 2024, the SEC says he made false and misleading statements to push two funds he controlled, claiming one had a portfolio value of more than $5 million and returns exceeding 140% [1].
3. Personal spending. About $384,000 of investor and client funds was allegedly misappropriated for personal expenses, including credit card balances, a sports car, and vacations [1].
4. Partial repayments. Williams began repaying certain investors in August 2024 and has repaid more than $375,000 to some investors, according to the SEC [1].

The complaint in the Southern District of Florida (No. 26-cv-81300) charges antifraud and registration violations under the Securities Act, Exchange Act, and Investment Advisers Act. Proposed judgments would permanently enjoin the defendants, further restrict Williams from securities offerings (with limited personal-account exceptions), leave disgorgement and penalties for the court to set, and include a forthcoming associational bar [1].

Affinity fraud does not require a religious congregation or immigrant community. Shared professions—police, fire, military, medicine—create the same shortcut: if someone works beside you or handles your pension paperwork, skepticism drops. The SEC’s complaint frames that dynamic as central to how Williams allegedly raised money from current and retired officers [1].

Even when a promoter later returns some funds, as the SEC says Williams began doing in August 2024, that does not by itself resolve registration or antifraud issues. Proposed settled judgments still require a judge’s signature, and disgorgement and civil penalties remain to be set [1]. (Update, Oct. 19, 2026: the consent judgment against Williams was entered Oct. 2, 2026, and the SEC imposed the associational bar Oct. 15, 2026 [2]. Whether the judgment against CMI Capital has been entered, and the amount of any disgorgement or penalty, was not stated in the sources we reviewed.) Investors who received partial repayments should still preserve records in case the court orders further relief.

Public pension plan administrators sit close to retirement money and to the people who earn it. That proximity is a professional duty, not a personal sales channel. When the same individual who is associated with pension administration starts promoting private funds with extraordinary returns, officers and retirees should treat the pitch as a hard conflict until proven otherwise through registration checks and independent documents [1].

The dollar amount in this case—about $860,000 from at least 18 investors—is smaller than some national Ponzi cases, but the pattern matters for consumer protection: inflated performance, personal spending of client money, and an affinity group that trusted the messenger. The SEC’s proposed associational bar, if entered, would be aimed at keeping Williams out of the advisory business going forward [1].

Red flags

• Colleagues at work pitching private “funds” with triple-digit returns.
• No audited statements or independent custodian.
• Lifestyle spending that seems funded by investor money.
• Unregistered advisers or funds.
• Pressure to invest quickly because “other officers are in.”

What to do if you're targeted

1. Separate workplace pension administration from any private investment pitch—different roles, different conflicts.
2. Verify registration on Investor.gov before wiring money.
3. Demand third-party custody and audited performance.
4. Report suspected fraud to the SEC, your pension board’s compliance office, and the FBI at ic3.gov.
5. If you already invested, document transfers and consider counsel; partial repayments do not erase potential claims.

Case status (as of Oct. 19, 2026)

Table updated Oct. 19, 2026; originally published as of Oct. 1, 2026.

Defendant	Court	Status as of Oct. 19, 2026	Source
Michael D. Williams, Port St. Lucie, FL	S.D. Fla. 26-cv-81300; SEC Admin. Proc. File No. 3-22776	Consent judgment entered Oct. 2, 2026 (permanent injunction; disgorgement and penalties left to the court, no ruling found as of Oct. 19, 2026); SEC associational bar ordered Oct. 15, 2026; consented without admitting findings. (As of Oct. 1: bifurcated settlement proposed, court approval pending.)	[1], [2]
CMI Capital, LLC (d/b/a Check Mate Investments)	Same	SEC civil defendant; proposed settled judgment; entry not confirmed as of Oct. 19, 2026	[1]

Civil allegations are not criminal convictions. Statuses can change.

Sources

1. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Litigation Release No. 26646, “SEC Charges South Florida Resident and His Company for Alleged Investment Scheme Defrauding Law Enforcement,” Sept. 23, 2026. https://www.sec.gov/enforcement-litigation/litigation-releases/lr-26646
2. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Investment Advisers Act Release No. 7027, Administrative Proceeding File No. 3-22776, "In the Matter of Michael D. Williams," order instituting proceedings, making findings, and imposing remedial sanctions, Oct. 15, 2026. https://www.sec.gov/files/litigation/admin/2026/ia-7027.pdf

---

Corrections and updates: If you are named in this article, or represent someone who is, and believe anything here is inaccurate or out of date (including a dismissal, acquittal, or change in case status), please contact us at editorandchief@scammers.com. We will review it and update the article promptly.