A UK courtroom ordered a worldwide asset freeze for the ‘Cryptoqueen’ and her OneCoin associates

A British regulation agency representing a gaggle of OneCoin traders stated {that a} London courtroom has issued worldwide freezing orders on property belonging to Bulgarian fraudster Ruja Ignatova and a few of her associates, months after the Worldwide Consortium of Investigative Journalists and its media companions revealed the promoters of the fraudulent cryptocurrency scheme invested in luxurious properties within the United Arab Emirates.

Worldwide authorities have accused Ruja Ignatova of being the mastermind of a $4 billion pyramid scheme that has claimed greater than 3.5 million victims all over the world since its launch in 2014.

Ignatova went lacking in 2018, shortly after the U.S. Justice Division indicted her on fraud and cash laundering fees.

In response to ICIJ’s media associate Chook, recordsdata seized by Sofia police throughout a search of a slain police officer’s dwelling seem to point out that Ignatova was later killed on a yacht in Greece on the order of a Bulgarian mafia boss. However some information shops have questioned that account.

The London Excessive Court docket’s determination, made public earlier this month, was a part of a authorized declare introduced by a gaggle of greater than 400 OneCoin traders who’re searching for damages to compensate them for the losses they suffered because of the alleged fraud, in line with their legal professionals at Mishcon de Reya LLP. Apart from Ignatova, the order focused seven folks allegedly linked to OneCoin and two Guernsey corporations utilized by Ignatova to purchase two London properties, in line with the BBC, which has reported on the rip-off extensively.

“This can be a actually essential step for victims who’ve been searching for justice for the fraud that has been perpetrated in opposition to them,” Mishcon de Reya’s associate Rhymal Persad stated in a assertion revealed on the regulation agency’s web site. “It has taken a very long time to get so far, however this can be a vital step to make sure these allegedly accountable for finishing up these illegal acts are correctly held to account.”

ICIJ beforehand reported that, in 2015, Ignatova used a Dubai shell firm known as Oceana Properties Ltd. to purchase a $2.7 million penthouse condo on the highest flooring of a skyscraper overlooking Palm Jumeirah, an archipelago of synthetic islands within the Persian Gulf.

Like Ignatova, a minimum of 11 of her associates owned a few of Dubai’s most unique properties over the past 9 years, the investigation revealed.

The findings had been a part of Dubai Unlocked, an investigation into the function of the emirate as an funding hub for criminals and suspects. The challenge was coordinated by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Venture and Norwegian monetary outlet E24. It was primarily based on leaked confidential Dubai land information obtained by the Middle for Superior Protection Research, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit group that analyzes knowledge on transnational safety issues.

In response to the Dubai information, the consumers included OneCoin’s co-founder Karl Sebastian Greenwood, who’s serving a 20-year sentence within the U.S. for his involvement within the OneCoin scheme; and Kari Wahlroos, a Finnish businessman who offered himself as OneCoin’s “European ambassador” at promotional occasions organized by the corporate. Greenwood declined to reply ICIJ companions’ questions. Wahlroos, who has not been charged, advised Finnish broadcaster YLE that he owned a number of residences in Dubai. He denied realizing that the corporate was used to launder cash, as alleged by prosecutors. “I’ve by no means had a penny to do with OneCoin itself,” Wahlroos stated.

Each Greenwood and Walhroos are among the many topics of the worldwide asset freeze alongside Ignatova, the BBC reported.

It’s not clear if the freezing order, which is meant to stop the defendants from disposing of their property, could have any quick impact. The order might not be enforceable except the courts within the international locations the place the property are situated formally acknowledge and acknowledge it.

Jonathan Levy, a lawyer representing different OneCoin fraud victims, advised ICIJ he was skeptical concerning the order’s results, contemplating that “no one is aware of the place Ignatova is.” He stated that there are $2 billion value of property linked to the scheme but to be “uncovered” all over the world and which can be unlikely to be in England, the place the asset freeze would have essentially the most affect.

In 2019, after a number of banks flagged transactions involving the “Cryptoqueen” and her corporations as suspicious, Ignatova’s firm Oceana Properties finalized the sale of her luxurious Dubai flat.

A title deed obtained by ICIJ’s associate Paper Path Media reveals {that a} younger British lawyer purchased the condo for about $1.6 million. It’s not clear who dealt with the sale on behalf of Ignatova and pocketed the cash. The lawyer who purchased the property didn’t reply to reporters’ questions.

Ignatova stays on the FBI’s listing of most needed fugitives. The company considers her to be alive “till there’s documented proof that she is useless,” a spokesperson advised ICIJ.

The U.S. authorities lately elevated the reward provided “for info resulting in the arrest and/or conviction of Ruja Ignatova” to $5 million.