US Attorneys in Maryland have filed securities fraud and wire fraud charges against Sam Lee, the alleged perpetrator of the $1.9 billion #HyperVerse #crypto investment fraud scheme that recently made headlines for having an actor pose as its CEO.
https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/68201210/1/united-states-v-lee/
HyperVerse, a cryptocurrency company that made headlines in recent months, was embroiled in a controversy involving the disappearance of its CEO, Steven Reece Lewis. With the loss of over 1.3 billion euros for investors, the company's success seemed to be part of a well-orchestrated scam. The founders, Sam Lee and Ryan Xu, had received significant backing from influential figures like Steve Wozniak. However, when the company came under scrutiny, the truth came to light: the video featuring Wozniak endorsing HyperVerse was obtained through Cameo, a platform that allows paying for celebrity videos. The CEO, nowhere to be found, was revealed to be Stephen Harrison, a British actor hired to lend credibility to the company. After five months of work, Harrison received a modest salary of 7,000 euros, a car lease, two business dinners, and two pairs of shoes. The investors, who had been defrauded, were quick to point fingers at the founders. Steven Reece Lewis, it turned out, had never been the real CEO. Instead, Harrison had taken on the role, consciously or not, to help legitimize the company. He had accepted the job due to a friend's recommendation and, initially, had trust in the information he found online.
The CEO Who Didn’t Exist, DRM Set Up to Brick Trains… Real Trains - HTTAY 76 Matt
#httay #crypto #hedgefund #hyperverse #newag #train #publictransportation
Fake #HyperVerse CEO was assured by his agent that "many people do this in the business. This is perfectly normal"
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2024/jan/11/hyperverse-stephen-harrison-crypto-investors
Is ASIC a complete waste of time?
“The HyperVerse scheme was the subject of multiple consumer warnings from financial authorities around the world, but escaped the attention of regulators in Australia.
“Lee and Xu have been referred to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (Asic) for potential breaches of the Corporations Act in relation to Blockchain Global, but Asic has said it does not intend to take action at this time.”
#crypto #Hyperverse #BlockchainGlobal #ASIC #Auspol
From: @drrimmer
https://aus.social/@drrimmer/111723653405313167
HyperVerse crypto promoter ‘Bitcoin Rodney’ arrested and charged in US https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2024/jan/09/hyperverse-crypto-promoter-bitcoin-rodney-arrested-and-charged-in-us Internal Revenue Service alleges Rodney Burton was part of a network that made ‘fraudulent’ presentations claiming high returns for investors based on crypto-mining operations that did not exist