The U.S. Department of Justice accuses two men of operating a crypto Ponzi scheme involving more than $25 million

According to an official announcement, the U.S. Department of Justice charged an Australian citizen (Saffron) and a California man (Mazzotta) with operating a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme that defrauded victims of more than $25 million. According to court documents, the two promoted cryptocurrency-related investment projects under various names, including Circle Society, Bitcoin Wealth Management, Omicron Trust, Mind Capital and Cloud9 Capital. Rather than investing the victims' funds in cryptocurrency, Saffron and Mazzotta allegedly misappropriated the funds to pay for personal expenses. The two were charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to obstruct justice, conspiracy to commit money laundering and money laundering. If convicted, they face up to 20 years in prison on each count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering.