David Carmona, the founding father of IcomTech, has obtained an almost 10-year jail sentence for operating a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme
David Carmona, the founding father of IcomTech, obtained an almost 10-year jail sentence after prosecutors characterised the agency as a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme, asserting that he “exploited working-class people.”
Carmona, 41, was sentenced to 121 months in jail on Friday by U.S. District Decide Jennifer L. Rochon, in line with a statement issued by the U.S. Legal professional’s Workplace for the Southern District of New York. As well as, he was handed a three-year time period of supervised launch. Carmona pleaded guilty in December 2023 to 1 depend of conspiracy for committing wire fraud.
In 2018, Carmona and his associates established IcomTech, selling it as a cryptocurrency mining and buying and selling firm. The agency claimed that buyers may earn income by buying particular “purported cryptocurrency-related funding merchandise,” in line with prosecutors. Nevertheless, these guarantees had been by no means realized. As an alternative, prosecutors allege that IcomTech didn’t have interaction in mining or buying and selling for its buyers however used the funds to repay different buyers and for private use.
“David Carmona masterminded the IcomTech cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme, which preyed upon working-class individuals by promising them full monetary freedom in trade for parting with their hard-earned cash,” mentioned U.S. Legal professional Damian Williams in a press release.
Based on prosecutors, Carmona and others organized extravagant expos to draw potential buyers whereas boasting concerning the substantial income they had been making.
“IcomTech promoters typically confirmed up at larger-scale occasions in costly automobiles and carrying luxurious clothes as a means of exhibiting their purportedly legit success from IcomTech,” the prosecution alleged. “The environment of those occasions was festive and designed to generate pleasure concerning the schemes.”
When buyers tried to withdraw their funds in 2018, they had been met with excuses, delays, and surprising charges. Regardless of the mounting complaints, IcomTech promoters, together with Carmona, continued to advertise the corporate and settle for investments, prosecutors mentioned. By the top of 2019, IcomTech had collapsed.
Moreover David Carmona, former IcomTech CEO Marco Ruiz was additionally handed a five-year jail sentence in January for selling the crypto Ponzi scheme firm.
From Forcount to IcomTech: Inside The $8.four Million Crypto Ponzi Scheme
On December 14, 2022, the U.S. Legal professional’s Workplace for the Southern District of New York revealed an indictment in opposition to IcomTech and Forcount. The 2 corporations, which claimed to specialise in crypto mining and buying and selling, allegedly promised buyers “assured each day returns.” These returns, they claimed, may double an funding inside six months.
Prosecutors claimed that, in actuality, each corporations had been utilizing funds from recent buyers to pay returns to earlier ones. Moreover, a portion of the cash was spent on selling the corporations in addition to buying luxurious objects and actual property.
Promoters would allegedly arrive at occasions in costly automobiles, wearing luxurious clothes, and boast concerning the cash they had been making from their investments within the firm they had been selling. Traders had been even offered entry to a “portal” the place they may observe their returns.
The Securities and Alternate Fee (SEC) introduced charges in opposition to the creators and promoters of Forcount. The grievance alleged that the group had primarily focused Spanish-speaking people, elevating over $8.four million from “tons of” of buyers. They did so by promoting “memberships” that promised a share of the corporate’s cryptocurrency buying and selling and mining actions.
In an try to generate liquidity, each corporations created their very own tokens to repay buyers. IcomTech launched “Icoms,” whereas Forcount launched “Mindexcoin.” Nevertheless, the token gross sales had failed, and by 2021, each corporations had stopped making funds to buyers.
David Carmona, from Queens, New York, was named within the indictment because the founding father of IcomTech and was charged with committing wire fraud. Alternatively, Francisley da Silva, the founding father of Forcount from Curitiba, Brazil, confronted expenses of wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and cash laundering conspiracy.
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