US Court Slaps Crypto Fraudsters with $30 Million in Fines and Restitution
A US federal court in Florida has ordered two defendants involved in a cryptocurrency and precious-metals investment fraud to pay more than $30 million in restitution and penalties. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) alleged that investment platform Fundsz marketed guaranteed returns to investors, but did not actually trade customer funds, and the weekly investment returns it claimed to generate were fictitious.
The CFTC said that Brian Early and Alicia Ann Kingrey promoted Fundsz on Telegram, misrepresented past weekly trading returns, and downplayed the risks of the investment. The agency stated that more than 9,000 people were harmed by the scheme.
Kingrey denied the allegations, claiming she did not deceive anyone and had never met Fundsz's founder, Rene Larralde. She also argued that customers were paid normally until the government froze the company's assets and that she lacked the financial means to pay the amount ordered by the court.