Cryptoqueen’s ex-boyfriend sent to prison for 5 years (Report)

Gilbert Armenta, the ex-boyfriend of Ruja Ignatova (better known as the “Cryptoqueen”), will spend five years in jail for participating in the OneCoin cryptocurrency fraud project.

Bulgarian-born Ignatova, the founder of the infamous Ponzi scheme, is on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted list. She was last seen in 2017 in Greece, while some sources have hinted that she may have been murdered.

Armenta gets five years instead of seven

According to a Bloomberg Law coverage, the Southern District of New York (SDNY) Courthouse sentenced Armenta to five years in federal prison for laundering $300 million in proceeds generated by the OneCoin scam. The 59-year-old was the ex-boyfriend of Ruja Ignatova, the creator of the scheme that defrauded investors out of more than $4 billion.

The initial investigation indicated that Armenta could go to jail for seven years. However, she pleaded guilty to money laundering, extortion and wire fraud in 2018, hence the reduced punishment.

Matthew Lee – Founder of the public interest organization Inner City Press – shed more light in the case against the defendant. After laundering $300 million, Armenta allegedly bought luxury items for himself, such as a jet plane.

He later violated his agreement with authorities by selling the aircraft and stole a check for $5 million. In addition, Ignatova’s ex-boyfriend bribed Mexican entities and gambled stolen funds from OneCoin investors.

Armenta’s lawyer stated that his client was not a violent person and added that his problems stemmed from the misfortune of entering into a “romantic relationship” with the “Cryptoreine”. Allegedly, she “drilled into his apartment and hired a couple to live next to him and keep an eye on him.” Armenta also bought a bank in Georgia, where Ignatova was already a client.

The defendant asked to serve his sentence at FCI Miami Federal Prison, a low-security correctional institution for male inmates. The magistrates have yet to decide whether to approve that request.

The ‘Cryptoqueen’ and her multi-million dollar scam

OneCoin – a fraudulent cryptocurrency pyramid scheme established in Bulgaria in 2014 – raised over $4 billion between its launch and 2016, scamming millions of people. Its founders urged investors to buy “educational packages” for trading digital assets that cost between €100 and €118,000.

Along with their purchase, people also received OneCoin tokens that could be exchanged for fiat on a specially designed internal marketplace. The venue had daily sale limits based on the type of package each investor had chosen, controlling the number of coins that could be redeemed.

The market closed for two weeks for maintenance in March 2016 and closed again in January 2017. However, individuals affiliated with the entity continued to accept funds.

Authorities in Bulgaria, Finland, Norway, Sweden, Latvia, and Croatia have warned numerous times over the years that OneCoin could be a fraudulent project, urging people to stay away from it.

CEO and founder Ruja Ignatova, described by the BBC as “the woman who scammed the world”, she was last seen in Athens, Greece, in 2017. Various reports indicated that she may have taken much of the stolen funds, concealment on a luxury yacht in the Mediterranean Sea. This could be a good place for a fugitive, since no jurisdiction or authority can arrest people who are twelve nautical miles from the coast.

Frank Schneider, the former head of Luxembourg intelligence, believe Ignatova could have been killed:

“I think she was murdered, and while I hope not, there is nothing to prove otherwise.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) also joined the search for the “Cryptoreine”. placement her on his “Ten Most Wanted Fugitives” list. The agency also offered a $100,000 reward to anyone who provided information on her whereabouts.

Resurfacing in London?

Earlier this year, a penthouse valued at nearly $15 million (purchased by Ignatova several years ago) reappeared in the London property market, suggesting the fugitive might be alive.

Bielefeld prosecutors previously charged Ignatova’s German lawyer with money laundering for transferring more than $21 million to finance the purchase of the apartment and a second floor in the building.

The asking price of the property located in one of the best areas of London, Kensington, was later reduced to around $13 million and is currently no longer for sale.

The real estate agent Knight Frank did not confirm if it was sold, but assured that it “complied at all times with its legal and regulatory obligations.”