The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has just announced the indictment of a New York man who allegedly ran a multi-year Ponzi scheme that swindled millions from investors in the US and abroad.
In a statement, the Justice Department says that Idin Dalpour has been charged with one count of wire fraud in connection with a modus that enticed victims into investing in his purported hospitality and cryptocurrency trading businesses.
According to the allegations contained in the indictment, the 39-year-old lured his victims into funding his hospitality enterprise with a promise of lucrative returns starting at 42% interest per year and an assurance that their money was insured.
As for the crypto trading enterprise, Dalpour is said to have falsely claimed that he bought cryptocurrencies wholesale and sold them at a profit to retail investors.
It is alleged that Dalpour did not actually use the investors’ funds as promised. Instead, he paid earlier investors their supposed returns using funds from later investors.
The DOJ says Dalpour eventually defrauded investors of at least $43 million over the course of the scheme that ran approximately between 2020 to April 2024.
Says US Attorney Damian Williams,
“As alleged, Dalpour’s promises were a mirage, and he was running a classic Ponzi scheme by paying investors purported returns with other investors’ money. Instead of using investors’ funds as promised, Dalpour spent lavishly on himself, which included racking up gambling losses of approximately $1.7 million and paying for his children’s private school tuition. Now, Dalpour’s gamble has him facing federal criminal charges for his alleged crimes.”
Dalpour was arrested on Wednesday. If found guilty, he faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
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