Deniz 
After prosecutors labeled IcomTech a crypto Ponzi scheme and said he “preyed upon working-class people,” creator David Carmona was sentenced to almost 10 years in jail.
U.S. District Judge Jennifer L. Rochon sentenced 41-year-old Carmona to 121 months in prison on Friday; a statement issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York states Carmona earlier admitted guilt to one count of conspiratorial wire fraud.
Starting IcomTech in 2018 with others, Carmona said it was a crypto mining and trading company. Prosecutors said the company guaranteed investors would make money if they purchased specific “purported bitcoin-related investment products.” That didn’t transpire. Rather, authorities claim IcomTech used the money to pay other investors and for personal purposes rather than mining or selling for its backers.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams in a statement said, “David Carmona masterminded the IcomTech bitcoin Ponzi scheme, which preyed upon working-class people by promising complete financial freedom in exchange for parting with their hard-earned money.”
The prosecutors said Carmona and others “hosted extravagant expos,” tried to get others interested in investing, and boasted about their earnings.
“IcomTech promoters often showed up at larger-scale events in expensive cars and wearing luxury clothing as a way of exhibiting their apparently legitimate success from IcomTech,” prosecutors added. “The environment of these events was festive and intended to generate excitement about the schemes.”
But when investors started seeking to pull money out in 2018, they were then greeted with hidden fees, delays, and excuses.
Prosecutors claimed that despite concerns, IcomTech promoters—including Carmono—kept pushing for firm promotion and welcoming investments. IcomTech sank before the end of 2019.
Marco Ruiz Ochoa, former IcomTech CEO, received a five-year jail sentence in January.
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