The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is selling confiscated proceeds from the BitConnect high-yield investment program, the biggest crypto fraud scheme to be criminally charged in the United States.
According to a press release published on Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Todd W. Robinson just approved the request of the DOJ and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California to liquidate $56 million worth of cryptocurrency seized from Glenn Arcaro, the top promoter and director of the Bitconnect high-yield investment program.
On September 1st, Arcaro pleaded guilty to the criminal charges filed against him. He admitted to misleading investors regarding BitConnect’s supposed proprietary technology for trading in order for them to invest in the program. Arcaro is due for sentencing on January 7th, 2022, and faces up to 20 years of jail time.
BitConnect defrauded investors for over $2 billion before it shut down in 2018. The proceeds of the sale will be used to compensate the victims.
“The government will maintain custody of the seized proceeds in cryptocurrency wallets and intends to use these funds to provide restitution to the victims pursuant to a future restitution order by the court at sentencing.”
The FBI and IRS criminal investigations are still ongoing. The DOJ encourages victims to identify themselves and submit a statement by visiting the U.S. Department of Justice webpage.
