Former semi-pro rugby player Shane Donovan Moore, who ran a $900K crypto mining Ponzi scam, has been sentenced to 2.5 years in prison.
As per the Department of Justice, the 37-year-old rugby player operated Quantum Donovan LLC, a company he claimed was into cryptocurrency mining and crypto investment.
This company ran between January 2021 and October 2022, with over 40 investors defrauded of $900K. He promised investors at the time that they would receive 1% of their investment daily based on the work of the mining machines. However, he never purchased any mining machines, and investments were used to pay off earlier investors in typical Ponzi scheme style.
“Mr. Moore used the newness of cryptocurrency to commit an age-old fraud – a Ponzi scheme,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. Moore’s early investors recruited their friends and families, leading to lots of recriminations when the losses mounted. Besides, many of his investors were his contacts from his rugby activities.
U.S. District Judge Tana Lin told him he “caused emotional and psychological damage to the victims” by the way he executed the scheme. He is accused of using much of the investors’ money to fund his lavish lifestyle—buying clothes, electronics, Lugards, and more.
His case is one of the many Ponzi investments disguised under cryptocurrency. While he has been reprimanded, investors should also be cautious with investing in Ponzi schemes that promise high returns with low risk.
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