Elderly Hoosiers will get nearly $900,000 as part of a settlement reached in an investment scam.

Indiana Secretary of State Diego Morales said the settlement has been made with Safeguard Metals, LLC and Jeffrey Ikahn in a federal lawsuit. The lawsuit was filed in February 2022 in the United States District Court for the Central District of California. It accuses Safegard and Ikahn of engaging in a nationwide $68 million fraudulent scheme that targeted the elderly.

“The Indiana Securities Division and its investigators continue to work diligently with agencies nationwide to stand up for Hoosiers and take down the bad actors. Hoosier investors lost a significant amount of money in this case. Those who prey on our vulnerable, elderly population should be held accountable. Our officials remain focused on educating all Hoosiers on best practices to protect themselves and to avoid schemes,” said Morales.

Morales says the order also finds that the defendants charged an average markup of 51 to 71 percent on the metals, which was substantially more than the amounts the defendants represented in their customer agreements as “operating margins” of 23 to 42 percent.

Safeguard Metals is also accused of steering over 97 percent of its sales from mostly inexperienced investors into overpriced silver coins which had significantly higher markups than gold coins and made Safeguard about $66 million.

The investigation and settlement were in partnership with the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission and 29 other state regulators.