{"id":21673,"date":"2026-02-10T07:26:39","date_gmt":"2026-02-10T07:26:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/u-s-sentences-crypto-scam-mastermind-to-20-years-over-73m-fraud\/"},"modified":"2026-02-10T07:26:58","modified_gmt":"2026-02-10T07:26:58","slug":"u-s-sentences-crypto-scam-mastermind-to-20-years-over-73m-fraud","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/u-s-sentences-crypto-scam-mastermind-to-20-years-over-73m-fraud\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. sentences crypto scam mastermind to 20 years over $73M fraud"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-detail__content blocks\">\n<p class=\"is-style-lead\">A U.S. federal court has sentenced a key figure behind a global cryptocurrency investment scam to 20 years in prison, capping one of the largest crypto-fraud prosecutions tied to so-called \u201cpig butchering\u201d schemes. <\/p>\n<div id=\"cn-block-summary-block_2181bcf2b2fd41e644f5590e6b254ee2\" class=\"cn-block-summary\">\n<div class=\"cn-block-summary__nav tabs\">\n        <span class=\"tabs__item is-selected\">Summary<\/span>\n    <\/div>\n<div class=\"cn-block-summary__content\">\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>U.S. court sentenced a crypto scam mastermind to 20 years over a $73M global fraud<\/li>\n<li>Defendant fled U.S. supervision and was sentenced in absentia<\/li>\n<li>Scheme used fake crypto platforms and shell companies to launder funds<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><!-- .cn-block-summary --><\/p>\n<p>The operation defrauded victims of more than $73 million, largely through fake trading platforms and online deception.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Fugitive sentenced in Absentia<\/h2>\n<p>The defendant, Daren Li, was <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.justice.gov\/opa\/pr\/man-sentenced-20-years-prison-role-73-million-global-cryptocurrency-investment-scam\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">sentenced<\/a> in the Central District of California despite being a fugitive at the time of sentencing. Li, a dual citizen of China and St. Kitts and Nevis, removed his electronic ankle monitor and fled U.S. supervision in late 2025. <\/p>\n<p>    <!-- .cn-block-related-link --><\/p>\n<p>U.S. authorities said efforts are ongoing to locate and return him to serve the sentence.<\/p>\n<p>Li had pleaded guilty in November 2024 to conspiracy to commit money laundering, acknowledging his role in moving fraud proceeds generated by overseas scam centers operating primarily out of Cambodia.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Inside the $73 million crypto scam<\/h2>\n<p>According to prosecutors, the scam relied on unsolicited social media outreach, fake cryptocurrency investment platforms, and spoofed websites designed to mimic legitimate trading services. <\/p>\n<p>Victims were gradually manipulated into sending funds after building trust through fabricated personal or professional relationships.<\/p>\n<p>Once funds were obtained, Li and his co-conspirators funnelled the money through shell companies and U.S. bank accounts before converting it into cryptocurrency. At least $59.8 million in victim funds passed through U.S.-based accounts as part of the laundering operation.<\/p>\n<p>Eight co-conspirators have already pleaded guilty in related cases. The Justice Department said Li is the first individual directly involved in receiving stolen proceeds to be sentenced, highlighting a broader push to dismantle international crypto fraud networks and hold organizers accountable.<\/p>\n<p>    <!-- .cn-block-related-link --><\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A U.S. federal court has sentenced a key figure behind a global cryptocurrency investment scam to 20 years in prison, capping one of the largest crypto-fraud prosecutions tied to so-called&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":21674,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21673","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cryptocurrency"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21673","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21673"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21673\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21675,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21673\/revisions\/21675"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21674"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21673"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21673"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bitunikey.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21673"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}