Court for the southern district of new York has completed a review of the first in the history of the case of the financial pyramid, built using bitcoins. The main accused in the case, Trendon Shavers sentenced to 18 months in prison.
About it reports Reuters.
Additionally, he was sentenced to three years supervision after his release, pay a special tax in the amount of $100 and a $1.2 million non-refundable Deposit and damages in the amount of $1.2 million.
Declared the verdict put an end to a case that began in July 2013 when Shavers was charged with cheating investors with an investment service, the Bitcoin Savings and Trust (BCS&T). The proposed Severson the service was subsequently recognized as a financial pyramid.
The charges included securities fraud and fraud using electronic means of communication that in the aggregate threatened Shavers 40 years in prison. But in 2015, the accused made a deal with the justice system, than have reduced the maximum possible imprisonment for up to 41 months.
In the course of the proceedings the Prosecutor of the southern Federal judicial district of the state of new York preet Bharara stated that this case is an example of the use of new technologies in the Commission of illegal acts.
"Applying new features to the old fraudulent schemes, Trendon Shavers used bitcoin to run a classic Ponzi scheme. Shavers was raising funds, promising spectacular profits and giving a personal guarantee this, but in reality just paid old investors with new," — said the Prosecutor.
In the concluding speech, Shavers admitted his guilt.
"I have made a catastrophic mistake. I don't think will ever be able to forget about it," said the accused.
In September 2014, Shavers was already fined $40.7 million, being the defendant in a civil lawsuit. A few months later he was arrested.
The Prosecutor's office in new York reports that as a result of their actions trendon the Shavers seized 146 thousands of bitcoins. At the time of the crime, their cost was $807 thousand., and by the time of the verdict reached $97 million.
Recall that in 2015 the district Prosecutor of new York has closed 73 fraudulent website, related with bitcoin. Then an undercover prosecutors failed to establish fraudulent sites, owned by YouYou Finance. Most of these sites offered an unusually high return on bitcoin deposits.