Related Federal Cases
- Western Union Scam · Washington
- James Leads Charge to Shield Haitian Immigrants from Deportation · Washington
- Live Nation Faces Trial Over Monopoly Practices · Washington
- NY AG James Leads Lawsuit Against Trump’s Research Funding Cuts · New Mexico
- Bloomfield Coke King Gets 7 Years · Connecticut
$9 Million Virtual Currency Scam Lands Texan in Prison
Homer Joshua Garza, 33, of Texas, formerly of Somers, Connecticut, was sentenced to 21 months of imprisonment for his role in a $9 million virtual currency fraud scheme.
According to court documents, Garza defrauded hundreds of individuals around the world by selling miners, access to miners, and the right to purchase a virtual currency called PayCoin, as well as ‘hashlets.’ A hashlet entitled an investor to a share of the profits that GAW Miners or ZenMiner would purportedly earn by mining virtual currencies using the computers that were maintained in their data centers.
To generate business and attract customers and investors, Garza made multiple false statements related to the scheme, including stating that GAW Miners’ parent company purchased a controlling stake in ZenMiner for $8 million and that ZenMiner became a division of GAW Miners.
Between approximately May 2014 and January 2015, Garza, through GAW, GAW Miners, ZenMiner, and ZenCloud, companies he founded and operated, defrauded victims out of $9,182,000. Judge Robert N. Chatigny ordered Garza to pay restitution in that amount.
On July 20, 2017, Garza pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud. Garza was ordered to report to prison on January 4, 2019.
The matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John T. Pierpont, Jr. and Jonathan Francis.
Key Facts
- State: Connecticut
- Category: Cybercrime|Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
ðŸâ€Â’ Get the grimiest stories delivered weekly. Subscribe free →
MORE FEDERAL CRIME NEWS
US NewsUS NewsUS NewsUS News