According to a statement released today from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, OneCoin’s legal chief, Irina Dilkinska, has pleaded guilty to money laundering and wire fraud charges. Dilkinska, a Bulgarian national, faces up to 10 years in prison for her role in OneCoin’s notorious crypto fraud scheme.
In a Manhattan federal court, Dilkinska admitted to facilitating the laundering of $110 million in illicit profits generated through OneCoin. She also confessed to assisting in the day-to-day operations of the fraudulent firm. Her sentencing hearing is scheduled for February 14 next year. Dilkinska was previously charged in March and extradited from Bulgaria to the United States.
“As OneCoin’s so-called ‘Head of Legal and Compliance,’ Irina Dilkinska accomplished the exact opposite goal of her position,” said U.S. Attorney Damian Williams. “As she has now admitted, Dilkinska facilitated the laundering of millions of dollars of illicit profits OneCoin accrued through its multi-level-marketing scheme.”
OneCoin was a fraudulent cryptocurrency scheme conducted by Bulgaria-based company OneCoin Ltd and Belize-based OneLife Network Ltd. It was founded by Ruja Ignatova and Karl Sebastian Greenwood. The scheme involved a covert database entry scam that imitated transactions on a genuine blockchain. However, there was no mining activity supporting the release and circulation of the cryptocurrency.
Between late 2014 and late 2016, OneCoin generated over $4 billion in sales revenue from approximately 3 million investors globally. OneCoin’s other founder, Karl Sebastian Greenwood, received a 20-year prison sentence in September for defrauding 3.5 million investors and misappropriating funds for extravagant expenses.
“OneCoin’s fraud scheme has left a trail of victims and significant financial loss,” commented the prosecutors. “We urge anyone with information on the whereabouts of Ruja Ignatova to come forward.”
The FBI is offering a reward of up to $250,000 for any information that leads to Ignatova’s apprehension.
