“Ray Trapani always wanted to be a criminal from a very young age. In 2017, in the midst of economic euphoria due to the bitcoin boom, scammers took advantage of this opportunity. When Ray’s friend suggested creating a debit card cryptocurrency, Trapani did not hesitate for a moment. There was just one problem: He had no idea how to do it. But thanks to fake LinkedIn profiles, paid celebrity endorsements, and the online community’s insatiable desire to get rich quick, Centra Tech quickly began making millions of dollars a day. Was it true? No. Did it work? ? Maybe.” This is the official synopsis for the Netflix documentary titled “.bit linked“, in spain”crypto scam“who investigates the dark side of the world cryptocurrenciesfocusing on a paradigmatic situation Central Technology.
One of the founders Raymond Trapani, He describes in the first person, with infuriating sarcasm (especially when it is known why he got away with it), how they orchestrated the macro scam. Centra scam attracted worldwide attentionIt started with a fake Initial Coin Offering (ICO) that tricked investors into investing in a cryptocurrency-based debit card that never materialized.
This fraud, carried out in 2017, managed to collect $25 million through misleading promises and statements.
Founders and Promise of Centra Tech
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Founders of Centra Tech, Sohrab Sharma, Robert Farkas and Raymond Trapaniintroduced the Centra Card, a debit card that will supposedly allow users to spend a variety of cryptocurrencies at places that accept Visa and Mastercard.
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they used aggressive and deceptive marketing tacticsIncluding the invention of fictional managers with impressive backgrounds in the financial industry.
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The founders did this False claims regarding partnerships with Visa, Mastercard and Bancorp To increase the reliability of your project.
- They paid money to celebrities like Floyd Mayweather Jr. and DJ Khaled to promote the ICO which attracts more attention and funds from unsuspecting investors.
Conclusion and legal consequences
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The plan was revealed in 2018 and US authorities, including the Prosecutor’s Office and the FBI, intervened. grown assetsIt was seized, including 100,000 ETH.
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Sohrab Sharma was sentenced eight years in prison for his role in the fraud. Additionally, he was ordered to forfeit more than $36 million in illegitimate profits.
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Robert Farkas was sentenced to prison one year imprisonment and was forced to forfeit approximately $347,000 and a Rolex watch purchased with illicit funds.
- Ray Trapani He did not serve any prison sentence By cooperating fully with the FBI.
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The recovered funds were sold by the authorities, raising approximately $33.4 million. payment of compensation to victims fraud.
Implications and warnings for the industry
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This case highlighted the importance of the issue investor due diligence He highlighted the risks associated with the cryptocurrency space and unregulated ICOs.
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The SEC’s intervention and subsequent legal action also served as a reminder that: Authorities were ready to take strong measures Against scams in the cryptocurrency space.
How did the Centra Tech case become a prime example of this? lack of regulation and control It could lead to significant frauds and losses for investors in the then-nascent cryptocurrency market.
Centra plan begins to unravel Nathaniel PopperA New York Times journalist revealed significant inconsistencies in the company’s founding, including the invention of a CEO (who would later “die” in a car accident) and the falsification of the founders’ resumes; This triggered a series of investigations. This led to the deception being revealed.
Governing Bryan StorkelThe documentary “Criptoscams”, which lasts 1 hour and 34 minutes, can be watched on Netflix Spain starting from January 1 this year.