The notorious Crypto-queen, Dr. Ruja Ignatova, 38, who allegedly scammed investors out of $4 billion in a Ponzi scheme is still alive.
Her company OneCoin was in business between 2014 and 2016. The scam involved duping everyday people around the world into parting with their hard-earned money.
Ignatova and her business partner, Sebastian Greenwood, tricked crypto enthusiasts by claiming that their crypto token, OneCoin, would be a “Bitcoin killer.” And convinced investors it would generate fivefold to tenfold returns.
The Crypto-queen and her partner referred to their investors as “idiots” and “crazy.” In 2017, as authorities circled the scammers, Ignatova vanished.
Greenwood also fled but he was arrested in July 2018.
Police took him into custody in Koh Samui, Thailand. And he was extradited back to the US.
He pleaded guilty to wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and conspiracy to launder money. He will be sentenced in April and could receive up to 20 years in prison.
Ignatova left the U.S. with a tremendous amount of cash. Money can buy many friends. And authorities believe that is why she has been able to stay off the grid.
Crypto-queen makes it to the most-wanted list
In 2019, the US Department of Prosecutions charged Ignatova with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit securities fraud, and securities fraud.
