Minjoosong
On June 26, the U.S. Department of State escalated its pursuit of Ruja Ignatova, the elusive founder of OneCoin known as the "Cryptoqueen." Ignatova disappeared in Athens in 2017, prompting the FBI to increase its reward from $250,000 to $5 million for information leading to her arrest or conviction.
Ignatova faces multiple charges, including wire fraud and money laundering conspiracies, related to the $4 billion OneCoin crypto Ponzi scheme that defrauded global investors from 2014 to 2017. The State Department has labeled OneCoin "one of the largest global fraud schemes in history."
While Ignatova remains at large, several of her associates have been sentenced. OneCoin co-founder Karl Greenwood received a 20-year sentence, and lawyers Irina Dilkinska and Mark Scott were given 4 and 10 years respectively.
Ignatova's whereabouts remain unknown, with speculation ranging from plastic surgery alterations to potential hiding spots in the Middle East or Eastern Europe. Unverified reports even suggest she may have been murdered in 2018.
In a related development, Ignatova's brother, Konstantin Ignatov, received a time-served sentence after cooperating with prosecutors. His testimony was crucial in the conviction of Mark Scott. Despite his release, Konstantin faces two years of court supervision and must forfeit $118,000 of his OneCoin earnings.
The ongoing manhunt and legal proceedings underscore the massive scale of the OneCoin fraud and its far-reaching consequences.
