Five people have been sentenced to prison in Austria for their roles in a $16 million pyramid scheme. This scheme tricked 40,000 victims into investing in real estate and cryptocurrency.
According to the Daily Mail, 11 suspects from Austria, Croatia, and Italy faced trial over 60 days at the Klagenfurt Regional Court. This trial is noted as Austria's largest fraud case ever.
The defendants included the 24-year-old stepson of an unnamed celebrity. They promised investors huge profits if they invested in property and various cryptocurrencies, like the EXW token. Instead of investing the money, they pocketed it, spending lavishly on luxury cars, wild nights out in Dubai, and even a shark tank. The celebrity's stepson reportedly spent €100,000 (about $108,000) on prostitutes.
In the end, five of the accused received prison sentences ranging from 18 months to five years. Another five were acquitted, while one defendant was absent from court.
Police faced challenges in taking down the gang due to their tactics. They moved money in plastic bags and hid cash in shoeboxes. They also used cryptocurrency platforms, making their financial trail nearly invisible.
Prosecutor Caroline Czedik-Eysenberg stated, “There were never any profitable projects.” She emphasized that the schemes were merely there to attract customers. One defense lawyer claimed that his client had no intention of committing fraud. He said they had “invested a lot of work and planned to make profits with various assets,” but got overwhelmed by the project.