The Securities and Exchange Commission announced October 7, 2026 that a federal court in Texas has entered final consent judgments against Robert D. Welsh and Caedrynn E. Conner. The court entered them on September 28. They had been charged in April 2025 with their roles in an alleged Ponzi scheme. They consented without admitting the allegations.
According to the SEC’s complaint, between May 2021 and February 2024, Kenneth W. Alexander II and Welsh ran a scheme called the Vanguard JV Cash Program, with Conner’s alleged help. It raised at least $91 million from more than 200 investors. The complaint says it was promoted as a highly profitable international bond trading business, but investor money was used to make payments to other investors.
The judgments permanently bar both men from violating key securities antifraud laws and from taking part in offering or selling securities, except for their own personal accounts. Welsh was ordered to pay disgorgement of $1,062,069, prejudgment interest of $168,077 and a civil penalty of $450,000, which totals $1,680,146. Conner was ordered to pay disgorgement of $8,575,250, prejudgment interest of $1,357,072 and a civil penalty of $500,000, which totals $10,432,322.
The case is a reminder of the usual warning signs: steady high returns, a promoter who is vague about where the money comes from, and returns that depend on new investors. The SEC’s release lists the court case number as 4:25-cv-00446 in the Eastern District of Texas.