US Charges Three Britons Over $2.7M 'Evolved Apes' NFT Scam
Summary:
Three UK individuals, associated with the "Evolved Apes" NFT scam, are being charged in the US for wire fraud and money laundering. They allegedly inflated the prices of 10,000 NFTs under the pretext of developing a video game, subsequently draining the funds and abandoning the project. The trio allegedly procured about $2.7 million worth of Ether (ETH) from the scam. They face a maximum 20-year prison sentence if found guilty.
The United States has pressed charges against three UK citizens implicated in the "Evolved Apes" nonfungible token (NFT) scam, blaming them for wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies. Mohamed-Amin Atcha, Mohamed Rilaz Waleedh, and Daood Hassan are accused of falsely ramping up the prices of 10,000 NFTs, promoting a fictitious video game before siphoning off investments and deserting the venture, according to a public report by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York on June 6. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams emphasized that while digital art might be novel, the principle remains - using false promises to extract money is against the law. FBI Assistant Director James Smith also highlighted that failing to deliver on a promised product severely damages faith in the seller-customer relationship. The scam NFTs remain visible on the open NFT marketplace, OpenSea. In total, the alleged scam swindled nearly 800 Ether (ETH), valued at $2.7 million at the time. Williams stated that the alleged thieves appropriated the financial investments, did not develop the game, and kept the profits. The U.S. Attorney's office alleges that on the first day of sales alone, Atcha, Waleedh, and Hassan made more than $2 million from "Evolved Ape" NFT sales, which began in the midst of the "NFT summer" on September 24, 2021. The project's website portrayed a "roadmap" and "phases" to lend legitimacy to the NFT undertaking. Phase 5 promised that Evolved Apes would introduce a combat game available only to owners of Evolved Ape NFTs. Less than a fortnight later, the site was closed down on October 5, 2021, leaving investors high and dry. Notably, Waleedh moved the purloined funds into a private wallet, but the cryptocurrency exchange blocked withdrawal. After Waleedh falsely claimed that he required funds for his grandmother's cancer treatment, the customer service team restored the withdrawal feature. The U.S. Attorney's Office is seeking a forfeiture of $875,850 in Tether (USDT) located in wallet address "0x519…6ed70” from the accused trio. In New York, the wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges each pose a maximum 20-year prison sentence.
Published At
6/7/2024 3:03:51 AM
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