TechFlow reports that on February 13, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Virginia announced that Ramil Ventura Palafox, CEO of Praetorian Group International (PGI), has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for operating a large-scale Bitcoin Ponzi scheme.
The 61-year-old dual U.S.-Philippine citizen defrauded over 90,000 investors worldwide between December 2019 and October 2021 by falsely promising daily Bitcoin trading returns of 0.5% to 3%, inducing them to invest more than $200 million—comprising approximately $30.3 million in fiat currency and 8,198 Bitcoins valued at $171 million.
Investigations revealed that investors collectively lost at least $62.7 million. Palafox misappropriated these funds to purchase 20 luxury vehicles, multiple mansions, and numerous high-end luxury goods.
