ANALYSIS: JPMorgan RICO Indictments Are a Rare Bird

The Justice Department charged two JPMorgan Chase & Co. metals traders and a former trader with criminal violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act for rigging precious metal futures markets over the course of a decade. It’s rare for the DOJ to bring criminal RICO charges. And the DOJ’s Sept. 16 announcement involves a new type of underlying allegation, spoofing.

Over the past nine years, the DOJ has brought an average of about 45 criminal RICO cases a year according to Bloomberg Law federal court dockets. And it is exceptional for the alleged “enterprise” at the center ...