The
Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has filed a civil enforcement
action against individuals and entities associated with Cryptobravos. It accuses
them of a massive fraud scheme.
The
CFTC alleges that the defendants fraudulently solicited and misappropriated
tens of millions of dollars from hundreds of individuals worldwide, including
the United States, under various trading aliases.
The
CFTC filed the complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of New
Jersey. It identifies the defendants as Or Patreanu of Israel, Snir Hananya of
Italy, Elijah Samson of Germany, Artem Prokopenko of Ukraine, and Expected
Value Plus Ltd., a Seychelles company, all operating collectively as
Cryptobravos.
The
accused entities are also known by several other trading names, including
Trade2Get, Coinbull, Cryptonxt, Tradenix, Cryptobravos, Nittrex, Pinance, and
Wobit.
The
CFTC alleges that from approximately January 2017 through October 2021, the
defendants orchestrated a global fraudulent scheme with operations in Israel,
Ukraine, Albania, South Africa, and other locations.
Their
mode of operation involved soliciting bitcoin and other funds from individuals,
with a particular focus on U.S. customers. The funds were intended for the
establishment of managed accounts to engage in the trading of digital asset
commodities, primarily bitcoin.
CFTC
Seeks Justice: Restitution and Penalties in Cryptobravos Case
Cryptobravos
agents falsely represented several key points to potential investors. It included
promises that the customer funds would be used for trading activities,
assurances of risk-free returns, and claimed that customers could withdraw
their funds at any time. However, the CFTC alleges that these representations
were nothing but deceptive tactics.
In
reality, the defendants did not engage in any trading activities involving
bitcoin or other digital asset commodities for their customers. The CFTC claims
that they never delivered on the promised returns. Instead, they held onto
customer funds.
In
many instances, customers were encouraged to withdraw funds from their
retirement accounts or take out loans to make additional deposits or pay
non-existent taxes or commissions. Most customers who deposited money with
Cryptobravos did not see their funds returned.
In
response to these allegations, the CFTC is seeking various forms of relief. It
includes restitution for victims, disgorgement of ill-gotten gains, civil
monetary penalties, permanent…
