U.S. District Judge John F. Walter found Gemcoin founder Steve Chen guilty of orchestrating a fraudulent scheme. This is according to a press release from the Justice Department.
From 2013 to 2015, the 63-year-old California resident owned Fine Investment Arts (USFIA), allegedly linked to amber mining and precious stones. He attracted investors with participation bonuses, and later began offering Gemcoin tokens.
According to authorities, Chen collected about $147 million from around 72,000 victims. The owner of USFIA also reported $138,000 in income in 2014, with confirmed expenses of $4.8 million.
In February 2020, the Gemcoin founder pleaded guilty to fraud and tax evasion. The judge sentenced him to 10 years in prison and ordered him to pay $1.8 million to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service.
In December 2020, the founder of the Argyle Coin cryptocurrency project received seven years in prison for running a $25 million Ponzi scheme.
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