US Judge Orders Bitcoin Ponzi Operator Imprisoned for Ignoring Court Order to Pay SEC $40 Million

1 year ago

US Judge Orders Bitcoin Ponzi Operator Imprisoned for Disregarding Court Orders to Pay SEC $40 Million

A territory justice has ordered a bitcoin Ponzi relation to beryllium arrested and imprisoned aft helium ignored aggregate tribunal orders and failed to wage the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) $40 million. He pleaded blameworthy to securities fraud successful 2015.

Bitcoin Ponzi Operator Faces Imprisonment After Failing to Pay SEC

Judge Amos L. Mazzant of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas said earlier this week that a bitcoin Ponzi relation volition beryllium arrested and imprisoned for civilian contempt unless helium instantly provides overdue documents and payments, Bloomberg reported.

Trendon Shavers, a nonmigratory of McKinney, Texas, owes the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) much than $40 cardinal aft pleading blameworthy successful September 2015 to 1 number of securities fraud. However, helium has repeatedly disregarded tribunal orders, Judge Mazzant said, adding:

Shavers’s flagrant disregard for the court’s orders connected aggregate occasions leads to lone 1 conclusion: Shavers volition lone comply with the court’s orders if helium is incarcerated.

The SEC charged Shavers and his company, Bitcoin Savings and Trust (BTCST), successful July 2013 for moving a bitcoin Ponzi scheme. According to the authorities, helium defrauded investors retired of astatine slightest 764,000 BTC.

The SEC obtained a ruling against him successful September 2014. The regulator said astatine the time:

The court’s judgement requires Shavers and BTCST to wage much than $40 cardinal successful disgorgement and prejudgment interest, and orders each suspect to wage a civilian punishment of $150,000.

Judge Mazzant’s contempt bid focuses connected the SEC’s effort to enforce the $40.4 cardinal civilian judgment, the work conveyed.

The SEC asked Shavers for definite fiscal documents to find his quality to wage the disgorgement. Shavers testified that helium had made nary payments and that helium was earning astir $4,000 per month. The tribunal ordered him to nutrient the documents and marque six $400 payments but the documents and 2 of the payments ne'er materialized, which led to much SEC motions and tribunal orders.

The territory justice besides noted that Shavers failed to look for a hearing. He reiterated that different than imprisonment, helium saw “no different mode to coerce Shavers to comply” with tribunal orders.

Do you deliberation Shavers should spell to situation for not paying the SEC aft pleading guilty? Let america cognize successful the comments conception below.

Kevin Helms

A pupil of Austrian Economics, Kevin recovered Bitcoin successful 2011 and has been an evangelist ever since. His interests prevarication successful Bitcoin security, open-source systems, web effects and the intersection betwixt economics and cryptography.

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