Key Takeaways:
- An Instagram influencer from New York admitted to committing a number of crimes, such as having stolen $2.5 million worth of Bitcoin from his fan base.
- Prior to fabricating false wire transfer receipts and giving them to victims, the accused supposedly promised to purchase Bitcoin at prices above market value.
An Instagram user in New York who was well-known for handing out cash to random people admitted operating a multimillion-dollar Fraud scheme and a Bitcoin swindle on Wednesday.
Influencer Jebara Igbara, who used the online alias Jay Mazini, has admitted to a number of crimes, including robbing his followers of $2.5 million worth of Bitcoin.
Jay would publish videos showing, among other things, the occasions when he gave large sums of money to multiple people as gifts. In actuality, Igbara was engaging in multiple fraudulent transactions that overlapped, defrauding investors of at least $8 million.
According to the complaint, by posting such videos, Igbara forged a public alter ego that depicted him as an individual of substantial means.In Brooklyn Federal Court, Jay Mazini entered a guilty plea and agreed to a consent decree that could result in a 10-year prison term.
Special Agent-in-Charge of the IRS Fattorusso clarifies In this case, everything that was assured to the victims seemed too promising to be true. While victims of the Bitcoin advance fee strategy were promised above-market value for their Bitcoin, those involved in the Con game were all promised a high rate of return over a short period of time.
Igbara sent his victims altered pictures of money transfer verifications that claimed to prove he had sent the funds for the cryptocurrency as guaranteed after receiving it, the court filing claims. Actually, no payment was ever made.
Igbara remarked to Magistrate Judge Peggy Kuo in a prepared statement on Wednesday morning, “While I did receive Bitcoin, I did not pay for it.”
He agreed to give one of his supporters $2.56 million in exchange for 50 Bitcoins, but he never paid the seller more than $500,000.
Igbara was also accused of a scheme to deceive people of the Muslim community in New York by asking for money to pay for COVID-19-related personal protective equipment, electronics resale, and stock investments (PPE).
In correlation with a vicious kidnapping last year, Mazini, who could spend up to 20 years behind bars on the fraud charges, is presently being held at the Passaic County Jail.
Federal investigators charged Mazini with defrauding investors in his company Halal Capital in addition to using his “influence” to trick followers into selling him bitcoin in March 2021.
This multimillion-dollar case should serve as a warning to anyone considering investing without proper research. Be wary of any investments that make outlandish commitments because, in most cases, if something starts to sound too tempting to be true, it presumably is.
Chair Gary Gensler gave a similar explanation when reality TV star and celebrity Kim Kardashian Payed $1.26 Million To Settle An SEC Crypto Charge in October. All that glitters is not gold
Such instances serve as a timely reminder that just because influential people or celebrities support or promote certain investment opportunities, that doesn’t mean that those products are suitable for everyone and at worst one can even get scammed badly.
