Crypto Scam: Justice Department To Sell $56 Million In Cryptocurrency After Bitconnect Fraud Case
The Justice Department will sell $56 million in cryptocurrency after stopping a Ponzi scheme that was committed through a crypto-trading platform called Bit Connect, CNBC reported.
The department said it was the largest crypto-related scam in history as it seeks to reimburse the victims of the Ponzi scheme by leaving a link on their website.
The scam victimized thousands of people, collecting $2 billion in crypto between January 2017 and January 2018, offering investors returns of up to 40% a month. Critics of crypto are often wary of the market as vulnerable people can fall victim to con artists.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Securities and Exchange Commission chair Gary Gensler have asked Congress to crack down on the crypto market and provide consumer protections.
Bit Connect’s former director Glenn Arcaro plead guilty to fraud charges in September and has been ordered to pay $24 million to his victims.
He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
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