BOSTON — For nearly four years, Randall Crater, 52, of Lake Mary, Fla., ran a brazen, multi-million-dollar fraud scheme disguised as a cryptocurrency revolution. Crater, the founder of the sham company ‘My Big Coin,’ was sentenced today to 100 months in federal prison after defrauding 55 victims out of more than $7.5 million. U.S. District Court Judge Denise J. Casper handed down the sentence, which includes three years of supervised release, forfeiture of $7,668,317, and restitution to be determined.
Crater marketed My Big Coin — headquartered in Las Vegas, Nev. — as a legitimate virtual currency backed by gold and linked to MasterCard, none of which was true. Between 2014 and 2017, he and paid promoters used social media, email, and text messages to push the lie that investors were buying into a secure, profitable digital asset. In reality, the ‘Coins’ were fictional, untransferable, and completely unbacked by any real value. The so-called My Big Coin Exchange was a mirage, designed only to funnel money into Crater’s personal accounts.
In July 2022, a federal jury in Boston convicted Crater on four counts of wire fraud, three counts of unlawful monetary transactions, and one count of operating an unlicensed money transmitting business. Prosecutors proved that Crater didn’t just mislead investors — he systematically looted their funds to finance a lavish lifestyle, spending over $1 million on antiques, jewelry, and artwork, plus luxury cars and a high-end home.
‘He saw the growing crypto marketplace as an opportunity to create the illusion of My Big Coin as a legitimate service from which investors would yield a profit,’ said United States Attorney Rachael S. Rollins. ‘His lies and deception inflicted real trauma, pain and hardship on the lives of 55 individual victims and their families.’ Many lost retirement savings, college funds, and life investments — all funneled into a digital graveyard of empty promises.
Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Boston Division, called the scam a textbook case of greed: ‘Randall Crater defrauded dozens of victims out of more than $7.5 million, convincing them their cryptocurrency investments were backed by gold when in reality their hard-earned money went to funding his lavish lifestyle.’ The fallout, he said, was devastating — delayed retirements, derailed education plans, and shattered trust.
Eric Shen, Inspector in Charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Criminal Investigations Group, warned the public: ‘The excitement of being part of a new market in cryptocurrency can be very enticing… but in this case they found their investment was nothing more than an investment in Mr. Crater’s lavish lifestyle.’ The case, he emphasized, is a stark reminder: if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is — especially when the only thing backing it is a con man’s ego.
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Key Facts
- State: Massachusetts
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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