US prosecutors have arrested one leader of the OneCoin project for stealing billions from investors through the alleged pyramid scheme.

Ruja Ignatova and Konstantin Ignatov have been indicted by the State of New York for wire fraud, securities fraud, and money laundering. Ignatov was arrested this week, however, Ignatova remains at large.

The pair defrauded investors out of “billions of dollars” using fake cryptocurrency.

OneCoin

Prosecutors are calling the OneCoin project a pyramid scheme whereby members work on a commissions basis and try to recruit other members to the project. Each of these members, of which there are a purported 3 million worldwide, are required to buy a cryptocurrency package in order to join up for the scheme.

According to CoinDesk, “OneCoin claims its tokens are mined by servers operated by the company and that its price growth is organic [however], neither of these are true, the release says.”

According to Attorney Geoffrey Berman, the two defendants promised big returns and minimal risk from their cryptocurrency company that was built on “lies and deceit.”

He furthered:

“They promised big returns and minimal risk, but, as alleged, this business was a pyramid scheme based on smoke and mirrors more than zeroes and ones. Investors were victimized while the defendants got rich.”

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Ignatova reportedly detailed in an email how she had an “exit strategy” from the project and will also face charges in India for the fraudulent scheme. Ignatova remains at large. The third leader of the project, Mark Scott, was arrested last year in Massachusetts.

Crackdown

The OneCoin project was highlighted as fraudulent since 2016. It has been globally recognized as a scam with nations across the globe warning users about it.

Have you fallen victim to a cryptocurrency scam? The market is volatile, and the risks of being scammed are high. What are your thoughts about the OneCoin project?