ST. LOUIS (AP) – A securities trader from suburban St. Louis has pleaded guilty to fraud charges for a scheme that defrauded investors of about $2.5 million over a 16-year period.

Federal prosecutors say 61-year-old Grahame Rhodes of Town & Country, Mo., pleaded guilty Friday. Sentencing is March 15.

Court documents show that Rhodes solicited family members, neighbors and friends by promising high rates of return on investments. Authorities say he returned some money to investors and represented it as profits, but it was actually money from new investors.

Prosecutors say Rhodes did not invest the money and in many cases converted it to his own personal use.

© Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.