Litigators are preparing to go after the next domino in the OneCoin case. David R. Pike, a Chief Operating Officer of a purported private equity fund management company, is now facing charges in New York’s Southern District Court, which has granted a continuance so the prosecution can continue with a pre-indictment disposition.
As first reported by Finance Feeds, Assistant United States Attorney Nicholas Folly asked for a continuance for the disposition, and wants to charge Pike with materially false, fictitious, and fraudulent statements. Pike allegedly stretched the truth a bit when talking to the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) Criminal Investigation Division, telling them he was unaware $400 million came from OneCoin, and that it belonged to OneCoin founder Ruja Ignatova.
Pike’s firm is believed to have helped handle the “Fenero Funds” that originated from OneCoin, helping to launder the criminally gotten wealth that was derived from the pyramid scheme.
The prosecution believes they can prove that Pike lied to the IRS investigators, and that he knew very well he was working with both OneCoin and Ignatova.
This is not that different than a similar case that was wrapped up recently. Mark Scott was accused of receiving $50 million in payment from OneCoin to help launder $400 million of their money. Scott’s defense was a bit different: While he admitted that he knew he was working with OneCoin, he believed that the possible involvement of George W. Bush’s brother, Neil Bush, lent credibility to the scam, so he thought they were decent people to work with. That didn’t convince anybody at trial though, as Bush denied any involvement in the end and Scott was clearly laundering funds for a pyramid scheme.
The investigation of OneCoin’s criminality appears like it could stretch out for years. Ruja Ignatova still has not been found, but her brother Konstantin has been sentenced to 90 years in jail. The entire scheme is believed to have stolen atleast $4 billion from their customers, while the actual number has been estimated to be much higher.
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