NY Court continues proceedings against OneCoin-linked individual
The Court granted a continuance in the case targeting David Pike, who is alleged to have made material misstatements concerning fraudulent cryptocurrency scheme OneCoin.
The lawsuit against David Pike, an individual linked to cryptocurrency scam OneCoin, goes on at the New York Southern District Court.
The latest filings with the Court show that a continuance until January 12, 2020, was granted in these proceedings. The order was issued in response to the US authorities that have launched the action against Pike. Assistant United States Attorney Nicholas Folly explained that the counsel for the parties in this case continued to engage in discussions concerning a potential pre-indictment disposition. Those discussions are ongoing, so a continuance was seen as appropriate.
David R. Pike, the Chief Operating Officer of a purported private equity fund management company. That company managed a series of purported private equity funds known as the “Fenero Funds.” Rather than making legitimate private equity investments, the Fenero Funds served to launder the proceeds of a massive international pyramid fraud scheme involving the sale of a fraudulent cryptocurrency known as “OneCoin.”
Pike, the defendant, is alleged to have made materially false, fictitious, and fraudulent statements and representations, to wit, during a meeting with Special Agents from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Division, and representatives of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. Pike is alleged to have falsely stated that he was not aware that approximately $400 million transferred into purported private equity funds that he helped to manage was derived from an international multi-level marketing scheme known as “OneCoin” or belonged to Ruja Ignatova, the leader of the scheme, when in fact fact, Pike was aware that the money belonged to Ruja Ignatova and that it was derived from OneCoin.
Pike, together with another individual linked to OneCoin – Mark Scott, are alleged to be responsible for managing approximately €450 million in the Fenero Funds. Ruja Ignatova was the ultimate beneficial owner of the money transferred into the Fenero Funds. In other words, all of the money belonged to Ignatova.
In November 2019, Mark Scott was convicted of conspiracy to commit money laundering and bank fraud.
