On Wednesday, Ruja Ignatova, famous for her role as the CEO of OneCoin, was included in the list of the most wanted fugitives in Europe. Ignatova is a suspect accused of launching the pyramid scam known as OneCoin.
It was one of the largest hoaxes in the history of cryptos. Ignatova’s narrative was well used as the foundation for a podcast series produced by the BBC called “The Missing Cryptoqueen.”
Officials claim she is a suspect of being the “driving force and intellectual originator” of OneCoin. A scam that motivated people worldwide to invest in this essentially worthless currency. Ignatova managed to scam very many unsuspecting members who saw the pyramid scheme as a business opportunity.
Officials claim she is a suspect of being the “driving force and intellectual originator” of OneCoin. A scam that motivated people worldwide to invest in this essentially worthless currency. Ignatova managed to scam very many unsuspecting members who saw the pyramid scheme as a business opportunity.
OneCoin had a membership of around 3 million
The foundation of OneCoin’s business was the sale of educational crypto trading packages to its members. There was a reward for members in the form of commissions to sell to further new members. This allowed OneCoin to grow its customer base.
During the height of the OneCoin Ponzi scheme, the firm claimed that it had a membership of up to 3 million people. The membership included victims from all over the world.
Thus, US prosecutors working in the Southern District of New York brought charges of wire fraud, securities fraud, and money laundering against the leaders of OneCoin in 2019. Besides Mark Scott, the prosecutors pointed the charges to Ruja Ignatova and her brother, Konstantin Ignatova.
Although Konstantin Ignatov was taken into custody in March 2019, and the police took Scott into custody in September 2018, Ruga Ignatova is still on the loose.
The authorities expanded the investigation, and it is now more likely that Ignatova will face justice. Her inclusion on Europe’s Most Wanted list and offering a cash reward of 5,000 Euros for information leading to her capture is a sign.
In 2019, a federal jury in Manhattan found Scott guilty. Moreover, in the same year, Ignatov negotiated a plea deal that ensured he would not face further criminal charges. Both of these events took place in Manhattan.
What exactly was the OneCoin?
OneCoin turned out to be a fraudulent Ponzi scheme disguised as a cryptocurrency. Initiated in 2014 by Ruja Ignatova, who fancies herself to be a “cryptoqueen.” The scheme managed to dupe millions of investors for two to three years.
The gorgeous Ruja persuaded individuals in 175 different nations to buy educational bundles. The bundle includes OneCoin tokens by using showy debuts and messages that caught their attention.
She led individuals to believe that they were a vital component of a significant profit scheme. He assured them that they would become wealthy due to their involvement. Sadly, “something significant” turned out to be nothing more than a massive con.
There was the extensive promotion of OneCoin as a cryptocurrency, even though a blockchain never supported it. People were well encouraged to sell the product to their loved ones using a business model known as multi-level marketing (MLM). The project had its platform and was not traded on any cryptocurrency exchanges.
Ruja Ignatova vanished in 2017, right when authorities worldwide were closing in on the con artists. Since then, she has not been in public. Later on, her brother, who had taken over as CEO of OneCoin, was taken into custody.
If you think that all this sounds like the story of a movie, you’re not alone; Hollywood is thinking the same thing. It would appear that a movie with the working title Fake is currently under production. Besides, a BBC podcast titled The Missing Cryptoqueen, which has nine parts, has already been devoted to discussing the fraud. With the publication of Ignatova on the Europol most wanted list, it is only a matter of time before she is caught.
