A US Judge has fined William Koo Ichioka $36 million for defrauding cryptocurrency investors by falsely promising high returns.
A federal court judge fined a New York resident $36 million for allegedly defrauding cryptocurrency investors by falsely promising high returns and then using the money to support his lavish lifestyle.
US Judge Fines William Ichioka $36 Million
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) published a statement on September 20 ordering William Koo Ichioka to “pay $31 million in restitution” to victims of the fraudulent cryptocurrency and foreign exchange (forex) scheme.
CFTC highlights falsely promising significant returns
He also needs to pay a civil monetary penalty of an additional five million dollars. The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) stated that Ichioka initiated the fraud in 2018, soliciting money from investors and making a false promise to them that they would receive “10% returns every 30 minutes.”
Additionally, it was asserted that although Ichioka did invest “some funds” in foreign currencies and cryptocurrency as he had promised to investors, he “commingled” investor money with his own money and used it for his own personal expenses.
These expenses included “rent for his personal residence, jewelry (including watches), and luxury vehicles. “At the start of August 2023, the court “entered an initial consent order of permanent injunction against Ichioka.”
This verdict comes more than a year after the court made that decision. During that time period, the regulatory body prohibited him from “trading in any CFTC-regulated markets and registering with the CFTC.”
Regulators prioritize crackdown on false return promises
In recent times, regulators have been keeping a close eye on those who make misleading promises of high returns in the cryptocurrency market. The Department of Justice (DOJ) charged Thomas John Sfraga, a prominent figure in the cryptocurrency industry, with wire fraud on May 18.
Sfraga had promised “the victims returns on their investments as high as 60% in three months.”
In the meantime, in February, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed charges against Brian Sewell, the instructor of a cryptocurrency trading course, for allegedly deceiving fifteen students into investing a total of $1.2 million in a hedge fund that promised to provide attractive returns.
As each year passes, the amount of money that cryptocurrency investors lose to con artists continues to increase. As of September 9, 2023, the United States of America suffered a loss of $5.6 billion due to fraudulent activity involving cryptocurrencies, which is a 45% increase from 2022.
The Internet Crime Complaint Center of the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) reported that crypto-related complaints accounted for ten percent of the overall number of complaints received, yet nearly fifty percent of those complaints were lost during that year.
In 2023, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) received 69,000 complaints relating to cryptocurrency. The research indicated that individuals over the age of 60 were the most frequently scammed, accounting for roughly $1.6 billion of the losses.
