- He tricked victims into investing almost $1 million
- He claimed to have enough funds to repay potential investors
- He lied that his AI trading software “never lost”
Ryan James Crawford, aka “Brody,” 30, from Miami was sentenced to five and a half years in federal prison for running a deceitful cryptocurrency and stock investment operation. The judge also ordered the amount of $988,895 to be forfeited, the US Department of Justice announced in a press release.
Series of false claims
Crawford ran the fraudulent scheme from June 2020 to March 2022. He tricked victims into investing almost $1 million in it by falsely claiming to have access to enough funds to repay potential investors on time, falsely claiming to be a highly successful licensed stockbroker who had made tens of millions of dollars through similar cryptocurrency and stock investments, falsely claiming that he had developed an artificial intelligence trading software that “never lost,” and misrepresenting the investment as low risk and high reward.
Funds spent on luxury cars, gambling
Crawford never returned any of the victims’ funds. Neither did he generate the huge returns he promised. In many cases, he spent investors’ fiat money and cryptocurrency on personal things, luxury rental cars, and gambling at the casino.
The sentence was announced by US Attorney Markenzy Lapointe for the Southern District of Florida, Special Agent in Charge Jeffrey B. Veltri of the FBI, Miami Field Office, Special Agent in Charge Rafael Barros of the US Secret Service (USSS), Miami Field Office, and Interim Director Stephanie V. Daniels of the Miami-Dade Police Department (MDPD).
No shortage of crypto scams
There has been no shortage of crypto-related scams in recent months. In September, charges were pressed against Rashawn Russell, a former investment banker at Deutsche Bank. He is accused of misappropriating funds from clients, whom he misled to believe would gain significant returns from cryptocurrency trading.
He faces three decades in prison and might have to pay damages of more than $1.5 million.
