Feb 5, 2021 10:40 UTC
| Updated:
Feb 5, 2021 at 10:40 UTC
By Clark
A crypto written agreement agent has avoided jail time despite lying concerning losing $3.25 million, with the choose noting the agent had been the victim of fraud himself.
A Manhattan federal choose has let AN written agreement agent walk free for deceiving a crypto investment manager concerning having purchased $3.25 million price of Bitcoin on their behalf in 2018.
During a hearing command over video conference on February. 4, U.S district choose Edgardo Ramos ordered Volantis Market creating founder John Barry Thompson of Pennsylvania to repay the $3.25 million to New York-based investment manager, reiterative unlisted, and sentenced him to 3 years of supervised unharness. Thompson pleaded guilty in Oct 2020.
According to legal publication Law 360, choose Ramos took under consideration Thompson’s lack of ill-intent and therefore the reality he had been victim of fraud himself, stating:
“Mr. Thompson engaged in serious illegal conduct [but] we’ve got to place that in context. This was AN uncommon fraud.”
Judge Ramos was conjointly willing to grant Thompson some leeway because of issues relating to Covid-19’s impact on the overcrowded U.S jail system. With the chance of getting the virus being terribly high and an absence of pronto out there vaccinations in prisons, Ramos noted the U.S judicatory required to “relieve the maximum amount pressure as we will from the punitory facilities.”
In 2018, Thompson’s written agreement firm Volantis was sent $3.25 million by reiterative unlisted to get five hundred Bitcoin on their behalf. However, whereas making an attempt to get the BTC from a 3rd party, Thompson found himself at a loss once the sellers allegedly took Iterative’s $3.25 million while not providing any Bitcoin reciprocally.
The two sellers, disbarred professional Phillip Reichenthal and fugitive ruttish Craig Levine, area unit currently facing fraud charges in AN in progress court case before Manhattan U.S District choose Lewis A. Kaplan.
Despite having lost the funds, Thompson song to reiterative for days concerning the unsuccessful trade and falsified account statements to point out a balance for the BTC that was ne’er purchased.
In Gregorian calendar month 2018, Thompson once more falsified documents once a second shopper transferred Volantis $4 million to get BTC that was ne’er noninheritable . choose Ramos ordered Thompson to repay the $4 million.
Thompson assured the choose that he would keep a fresh start moving forward, stressing that whereas he was guilty of deceiving his shoppers, his intention had been for the deals to succeed.
“I will promise your honor … I will be able to not be in hassle with the law once more,” he said.
Clark
Head of the technology.
