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Austrian law enforcement officers have accused eleven people of participating in a pyramid scheme related to real estate investments and cryptocurrencies, in which 40,000 investors lost assets totaling about $16 million.
Among them was the 24-year-old stepson of an unnamed celebrity. The court sentenced five defendants to prison terms ranging from 5 to 18 months, five were acquitted, and one was absent from trial.
According to prosecutors, the organizers of the scheme guaranteed investors large profits if they invested in real estate and traded various cryptocurrencies, including the EXW crypto asset.
However, the scammers embezzled the collected funds, squandering them on visits to nightclubs in Dubai, as well as on the purchase of real estate, luxury cars, private jets and even an aquarium with sharks. In particular, the stepson of the celebrity spent about $108,000 on the services of "girls of easy virtue" alone.
Police called the case one of the largest fraud trials in Austrian history. The investigation was complicated by the fact that the criminals transported money in plastic bags, stored cash in shoe boxes and exchanged funds through cryptocurrency platforms.
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Jailed Crypto Scammers Spent Stolen Funds on 'Shark Tank' and Prostitutes
Five people have been sentenced to prison for participating in a $21.6 million cryptocurrency fraud scheme.
The criminals received $21.6 million (€20 million) from about 40,000 investors through several investment schemes, including the EXW wallet and the EXW cryptocurrency token, Austrian news outlet Heute reported on October 23.
Two of the defendants were sentenced to 5 years in prison, two received 30 months, and another received 18 months in prison. Five were acquitted, and the rest continue to hide from the authorities.
The fraud trial in the district court of Klagenfurt was the largest in the history of Austria, Hoyte noted.
The sentences were handed down by Judge Claudia Bandion-Ortner on October 23 after a two-month trial and 300 hours of negotiations. Hoite said the scammers lived as if they were in a "Hollywood movie" - hanging out at some of Dubai's "chic" clubs and traveling between cities on private jets.
They even bought a shark tank from a villa that news and review site BehindMLM reports is located in Bali.
As reported by BehindMLM in a July 12 article, more than $100,000 was spent on sex workers.
"There was no shortage of money," Hoyte said.
The fraudulent operation was based in Dubai, but some of the stolen money will be transported to Austria (where many of them come from) in plastic bags, Hoite noted.
In September 2023, Austrian prosecutors indicted eight people involved in the EXW scam, and several more people were charged in the following months.
The lack of an extradition agreement between Austria and the United Arab Emirates has made it difficult for prosecutors, Hoyte said, noting that some of the defendants voluntarily surrendered and others went into hiding.
One of the founders of EXW Wallet, Benjamin Herzog, pleaded guilty in December last year, BehindMLM reports.
Some of those convicted under the verdict of October 23 apparently plan to appeal their sentences.
EXW Wallet was launched at the end of 2019 and promises EXW tokens a daily return on investment of 0.1% to 0.32%. The fraud scheme collapsed a few months later, in 2020.
The scammers have also promoted real estate projects, while some of the defendants are also under investigation in a cannabis-related fraud case, where $17.2 million (€16 million) was allegedly stolen from 17,000 victims.
• Source: https://www.heute.at/s/haibecken-privatjet-jetzt-sind-schnoesel-urteile-da-120068550
• Source: https://behindmlm.com/companies/exw-wallet-verdicts-delayed-to-september-2024/
• Source: https://behindmlm.com/companies/benjamin-herzog-pleads-guilty-to-exw-wallet-fraud-charges/
Among them was the 24-year-old stepson of an unnamed celebrity. The court sentenced five defendants to prison terms ranging from 5 to 18 months, five were acquitted, and one was absent from trial.
According to prosecutors, the organizers of the scheme guaranteed investors large profits if they invested in real estate and traded various cryptocurrencies, including the EXW crypto asset.
However, the scammers embezzled the collected funds, squandering them on visits to nightclubs in Dubai, as well as on the purchase of real estate, luxury cars, private jets and even an aquarium with sharks. In particular, the stepson of the celebrity spent about $108,000 on the services of "girls of easy virtue" alone.
Police called the case one of the largest fraud trials in Austrian history. The investigation was complicated by the fact that the criminals transported money in plastic bags, stored cash in shoe boxes and exchanged funds through cryptocurrency platforms.
------
Jailed Crypto Scammers Spent Stolen Funds on 'Shark Tank' and Prostitutes
Five people have been sentenced to prison for participating in a $21.6 million cryptocurrency fraud scheme.
The criminals received $21.6 million (€20 million) from about 40,000 investors through several investment schemes, including the EXW wallet and the EXW cryptocurrency token, Austrian news outlet Heute reported on October 23.
Two of the defendants were sentenced to 5 years in prison, two received 30 months, and another received 18 months in prison. Five were acquitted, and the rest continue to hide from the authorities.
The fraud trial in the district court of Klagenfurt was the largest in the history of Austria, Hoyte noted.
The sentences were handed down by Judge Claudia Bandion-Ortner on October 23 after a two-month trial and 300 hours of negotiations. Hoite said the scammers lived as if they were in a "Hollywood movie" - hanging out at some of Dubai's "chic" clubs and traveling between cities on private jets.
They even bought a shark tank from a villa that news and review site BehindMLM reports is located in Bali.
As reported by BehindMLM in a July 12 article, more than $100,000 was spent on sex workers.
"There was no shortage of money," Hoyte said.
The fraudulent operation was based in Dubai, but some of the stolen money will be transported to Austria (where many of them come from) in plastic bags, Hoite noted.
In September 2023, Austrian prosecutors indicted eight people involved in the EXW scam, and several more people were charged in the following months.
The lack of an extradition agreement between Austria and the United Arab Emirates has made it difficult for prosecutors, Hoyte said, noting that some of the defendants voluntarily surrendered and others went into hiding.
One of the founders of EXW Wallet, Benjamin Herzog, pleaded guilty in December last year, BehindMLM reports.
Some of those convicted under the verdict of October 23 apparently plan to appeal their sentences.
EXW Wallet was launched at the end of 2019 and promises EXW tokens a daily return on investment of 0.1% to 0.32%. The fraud scheme collapsed a few months later, in 2020.
The scammers have also promoted real estate projects, while some of the defendants are also under investigation in a cannabis-related fraud case, where $17.2 million (€16 million) was allegedly stolen from 17,000 victims.
• Source: https://www.heute.at/s/haibecken-privatjet-jetzt-sind-schnoesel-urteile-da-120068550
• Source: https://behindmlm.com/companies/exw-wallet-verdicts-delayed-to-september-2024/
• Source: https://behindmlm.com/companies/benjamin-herzog-pleads-guilty-to-exw-wallet-fraud-charges/
