David Carmona, the founder of the cryptocurrency “Ponzi” scheme IcomTech, has been handed a 10-year prison sentence for conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Carmona was the “mastermind” behind IcomTech, which “preyed upon working-class people by promising them complete financial freedom in exchange for parting with their hard-earned money,” United States Attorney Damian Williams said in an Oct. 4 statement.
The founder told investors the funds would be invested in crypto trading and mining activities and that profits would double every six months — but that was never the case, Williams said:
“In reality, IcomTech was doing no such thing. It was all a lie. And when the scheme came crashing down, Carmona’s victims were left with nothing. Carmona’s days of scamming honest people are at an end, and he now faces substantial time in prison.”
In addition to the 121-month prison term, Carmona was sentenced to three years of supervised release.
The IcomTech Ponzi scheme netted an estimated $8.4 million from victims between mid-2018 and the end of 2019.
Carmona and other promoters of IcomTech often traveled through the US and overseas, where they hosted “lavish expos” aimed at luring victims into the Ponzi scheme.
They would often arrive at these events in expensive cars and wear luxurious clothing while boasting about the money they were earning to convince potential investors they could reach the same level of financial success.
Source: US Attorney SDNY
But those who were lured in started experiencing problems soon after.
Many victims started complaining when they couldn’t withdraw the “profits” they saw accumulate in the online portal and were often met with excuses, delays, and hidden fees from the IcomTech team if they were able to make withdrawals at all.
As complaints rose, IcomTech offered a token called “Icoms” to raise extra cash on the false claim it would be accepted by companies in payments.
Icoms were essentially worthless and caused further losses as IcomTech collapsed in 2019 and stopped making payments.
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Carmona pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy in December 2023.
Former IcomTech CEO Marco Ruiz Ochoa was also sentenced to five years in prison in January.
Meanwhile, IcomTech promoters David Brend and Gustavo Rodriguez were convicted of conspiracy to commit wire fraud in March.
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