Cryptocurrency has increased in popularity, which has led to more frequent and sophisticated schemes in recent years as scammers look to take advantage of investors.
US Court Sentences Another Centra Tech Co-Founder to 8 Years in Jail
Sohrab Sharma, a co-founder with the now-defunct Florida cryptocurrency firm, Centra Tech, has been sentenced to eight years in prison after he pleaded guilty to charges of duping investors via a fraudulent initial coin offering (ICO). Additionally, the court has ordered Sharma to forfeit $36,088,960.
Material Misrepresentations
Prior to Sharma’s sentencing, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) similarly announced the jailing of Robert Joseph Farkas, another mastermind of Centra Tech. Both Sharma and Farkas are accused of using fabricated business relationships with legitimate institutions to dupe investors.
In a statement, Ilan T. Graff, the Attorney for the United States, said Sharma had “led a scheme to deceive investors by falsely claiming that the start-up he co-founded had developed fully functioning, cutting-edge cryptocurrency-related financial products.”