embezzlement

Sonic Labs has issued a statement regarding recent public comments about Andre Cronje and the Sonic network. In 2018, a Korean team initiated an ICO for Fantom (now renamed Sonic), which failed to deliver a fully functional product due to mismanagement, resulting in the depletion of a significant amount of funds. Andre Cronje joined in June 2018 and rebooted Fantom. At the time Andre joined, the treasury held less than $5 million in non-FTM assets, which grew to nine figures between 2020 and 2021.Sonic Labs further stated that Andre did not design the original Fantom token economic model; the model was created by the original Korean team in 2018 and later modified through on-chain governance. Andre does not unilaterally hold or control the Sonic development fund. Andre has never abandoned Fantom/Sonic, designed the original technology, expanded the funding, and continues to serve as a technical advisor, regularly providing guidance to the technical team. There is no instance of fund misappropriation.

According to the disclosure from the Xiamen Procuratorate's official account, a salesperson from a certain distribution company in Fujian incurred huge debts due to involvement in virtual currency investments and began embezzling funds from spring 2024.The employee unauthorizedly replaced the company's public payment code with a personal WeChat payment code and bank account, guiding clients to transfer educational material subscription payments directly into their personal account. The report shows that the employee embezzled over 1.53 million yuan from the company and invested all related funds into Bitcoin and other virtual currencies for trading, attempting to profit through speculation, but ultimately lost all the funds. The Chang'an District Procuratorate has prosecuted them for embezzlement, and the court sentenced them to two years and three months in prison, along with a fine.

According to a report by The Paper, Xunlei has filed a lawsuit against former CEO Chen Lei and his core team, accusing them of harming the company's interests, with a claim amounting to 200 million yuan. The case has been accepted and filed by the relevant court in Shenzhen. Chen Lei recruited his hometown friends and close associates through Xunlei's former senior vice president Dong Xue, placing them in key positions within the company. They allegedly used illegal means such as fabricating transaction links and creating false contracts to siphon off company funds, involving a substantial amount.The new management has already conducted a cleanup and adjustment of Xunlei's related businesses and personnel. In addition, Chen Lei is also suspected of misappropriating tens of millions of company funds for illegal cryptocurrency trading, which is explicitly prohibited by the state.Chen Lei joined Xunlei as Chief Technology Officer in 2014 and was promoted to CEO in 2017. In 2020, Xunlei dismissed him on suspicion of embezzlement. Subsequently, the Shenzhen Public Security Bureau initiated an investigation into Chen Lei and others suspected of embezzlement. To evade investigation, Chen Lei and former senior vice president Dong Xue have left the country.

According to Hongxing News, Chen Zhi, the founder of the Cambodian telecom fraud group known as the "Prince Group," which has been investigated by multiple countries' police, was once involved in a "black eat black" incident with David Wong, the sole head of a Singapore family office.It is understood that David Wong was dismissed in July 2021, and between 2021 and 2022, Chen Zhi filed multiple lawsuits against David Wong, accusing him of "embezzling" 5.84 million Singapore dollars (approximately 31.91 million yuan) from his bank account. There are over 80 related legal documents.

ChainCatcher news, according to the Jeonnam Mokpo Police Station in South Korea, a church accountant in his 60s has been applied for arrest on suspicion of embezzlement.The man allegedly misappropriated approximately 480 million won in donations, which were intended for church construction, transferring them to a friend's account and then investing in cryptocurrency, ultimately losing all of it. The case is currently under further investigation.

ChainCatcher news, according to Yonhap News Agency, the South Korean prosecution is seeking a three-year prison sentence for actress Hwang Jung-eum, who has been indicted for allegedly embezzling 4.3 billion won (approximately 3.07 million USD) and investing in virtual currency.The Jeju District Prosecutors' Office requested the court to sentence the indicted actress Hwang Jung-eum to three years in prison for the charge of embezzlement under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Economic Crimes during a public trial held on the 21st at the Second Criminal Division of the Jeju District Court (presided over by Judge Lim Jae-nam).Earlier reports indicated that on June 17, South Korean actress Hwang Jung-eum (transliteration) was indicted for allegedly embezzling approximately 4.2 billion won (about 3.07 million USD) to invest in virtual currency. Her management company Y1 Entertainment stated on June 17 that Hwang Jung-eum had repaid all debts in two installments on May 30 and June 5. Previously, Hwang Jung-eum withdrew a total of 4.34 billion won from Tunmin Jeong-eum Entertainment around 2022, most of which was used for cryptocurrency investments. The case involves violations of the relevant provisions regarding embezzlement in the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes and is currently undergoing judicial proceedings.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, the founders of the crypto fintech company Bankera have been accused of using funds raised from the 2018 Initial Coin Offering (ICO) to purchase luxury properties worldwide.According to leaked company records and bank statements, founders Vytautas Karalevičius, Justas Dobiliauskas, and Mantas Mockevičius transferred nearly half of the ICO funds (approximately $114 million) into a bank they purchased in Vanuatu. The bank subsequently issued loans to companies owned by the three for the acquisition of luxury properties in the French Riviera and Lithuania.Bankera had promised to become "the bank of the blockchain era" and obtain an EU banking license, but this has not yet been realized. Its originally planned profit-sharing program was suspended in 2022. The founders' lawyer denied any fraudulent activity in the ICO but declined to comment on specific transactions.

ChainCatcher news, the founder of Slow Mist, Yu Xian, posted on the X platform to review the DEXX hacking incident, stating that the main cause of the incident was indeed the exploitation of a vulnerability in the ZenTao platform used by DEXX, which led to an external intrusion. Subsequently, the production network-related servers and database permissions were compromised, and all forensic analyses have traced back this attack path. In other words, DEXX is also a victim, but bears responsibility for inadequate security management.Furthermore, although DEXX's performance during this life-and-death hacking incident was quite chaotic, the fact that they were ultimately able to provide compensation puts them ahead of 99.99% of projects in this industry.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea sentenced Dylan Meissner to 48 months in prison on December 17, followed by two years of supervised release, and ordered him to repay over $4.6 million in stolen funds and unpaid loans.The U.S. Department of Justice did not mention the name of Meissner's previous employer in the case, referring to it in court as "Company A" and "a cryptocurrency research company," but Meissner was employed by Delphi Digital at the time of his crimes.Meissner's attorney also repeatedly mentioned in a sentencing memorandum submitted earlier this month that "Delphi" is the name of the company.

ChainCatcher news, according to News 1, a Woori Bank employee in South Korea has been arrested and prosecuted for embezzling 18 billion won (approximately 13 million USD), of which about 15 billion won (approximately 10.84 million USD) was spent on purchasing virtual assets.From July of last year to May of this year, the employee forged loan documents 35 times in the names of 17 clients, including individuals and businesses, applied for fraudulent loans, and then transferred the loan amounts into acquaintances' accounts, totaling approximately 17.77 billion won.The prosecution seized 180 million won from the employee's residence and froze virtual asset exchange deposits, bank deposits, and rental deposits totaling approximately 4.5 billion won through asset forfeiture and collection preservation.

ChainCatcher news, according to Fortune magazine, a survey found that Yida Gao, the founder of crypto venture capital Shima Capital, created a secret offshore entity and transferred assets belonging to his venture capital firm to a company registered in his own name, without the knowledge of other investors in the company. Lawyer Eric Hess stated that this completely violates the conduct permitted under the Investment Advisers Act.Yida Gao has not been charged with any crime, and a representative of Shima Capital stated that the company would not comment on "such regulatory matters." However, according to an anonymous source, Yida Gao's poor performance and behavior have clearly violated the investor protection rules of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), putting him in a difficult position for raising further funds. A representative from Shima Capital revealed that the company is currently not seeking financing.Shima Capital has also experienced a wave of high-level employee departures in recent months, including Chief Technology Officer Carl Hua and Research Director Alexander Lin, who left earlier this year to start their own venture capital firm, as well as Chief Operating Officer and Head of Compliance Hazel Chen. The departing executives did not respond to requests for comment. The latest SEC filings show that the firm manages approximately $158 million in assets—this figure is down from the $200 million raised in 2022.

ChainCatcher news, former CEO of Heartland Tri-State Bank, Shan Hanes, pleaded guilty on Thursday, admitting to embezzling $47.1 million for personal cryptocurrency purchases, which led to the bank's collapse.From May to July 2023, Shan Hanes made at least 10 wire transfers from the bank to cryptocurrency accounts, which was later acquired by Dream First Bank. Shan Hanes faces up to 30 years in prison. He is scheduled to be sentenced on August 8, 2024.

ChainCatcher news, South Korean prosecutors have begun a comprehensive investigation into former Kakao chairman Kim Beom-soo (phonetic) and Kakao executives for allegations of embezzlement of virtual currency and breach of trust.The prosecution has transferred the case to the Southern District Prosecutors' Office's Joint Investigation Team for Virtual Asset Crimes and conducted the first plaintiff investigation on the 11th. On that day, prosecutors inquired in detail about the main allegations of the plaintiff, the legal background, and the amount of damages. It is reported that the prosecution also requested the plaintiff to submit additional data regarding the cryptocurrency Klay transaction details of Kakao affiliate executives.On the 13th of last month, former Kakao chairman Kim Beom-soo and executives of Kakao affiliates were indicted for embezzlement and breach of trust. The reason is that Kakao created the virtual currency "Klay" through its subsidiary, raising funds by selling it to investors and embezzling the proceeds. If fraudulent transactions as defined by the Capital Markets Act are confirmed in the allegations, investors who invested during this period can seek compensation for losses caused by the criminal acts.

ChainCatcher news, the South Korean Financial Services Commission is conducting a comprehensive investigation into the allegations of fraud, embezzlement, and breach of trust against the South Korean crypto financial company Delio, which suspended deposits and withdrawals on June 14.Currently, the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) of the Financial Services Commission has obtained Delio's virtual asset operations and financial data. (Source link)

ChainCatcher news, according to South Korean media Money Today, the Seoul Southern District Prosecutor's Office's First Financial Investigation Division has indicted former Coinone executive Jeon on charges of corruption, and will conduct a pre-arrest interrogation of the suspect on the morning of the 10th.Jeon is accused of accepting bribes from virtual currency brokers Go and Hwang Aunt between 2020 and 2021 in exchange for listing "Kimchi Coin." One of the tokens suspected of bribing Jeon for the listing, P Coin, recently appeared in the kidnapping and murder case in Gangnam, Seoul. P Coin was created in 2020, and the main perpetrator, mastermind, and victim of the Gangnam kidnapping and murder case are all investors in P Coin. (source link)

ChainCatcher news, according to Yonhap News Agency, the minister in charge of the arrest warrant at the Southern District Court of Seoul has arrested Bithumb's actual controller, Jiang Zhongxuan (transliteration), on suspicion of embezzlement and dereliction of duty, stating that he "may flee and destroy evidence." Additionally, Zhao (transliteration), a representative of a non-listed company believed to be an associate of Jiang, was also detained.Previously reported, on January 10, the Korean National Tax Service began a special tax investigation into the virtual asset trading platform Bithumb, with the Seoul Regional Tax Office's Investigation Division 4 deploying dozens of investigators to Bithumb's headquarters located in the Gangnam District of Seoul to conduct an on-site tax investigation. (source link)

According to Chain Catcher news, CoinDesk reported that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a lawsuit on Thursday against two crypto advisory firms and their owners for allegedly misappropriating investor funds that they promised to invest in digital assets. The charges filed in the Manhattan federal district court state that Creative Advancement LLC and Edelman Blockchain Advisors LLC, along with their owner Gabriel Edelman, raised $4.3 million by providing and selling securities to four investors through the use of "false and misleading statements." (Source link)