(CMR) A Bulgarian woman who worked in a crypto company that orchestrated the transfer of $110 million in fraudulently obtained proceeds to a Cayman Islands entity has been sentenced to four years in US prison.
Irina Dilkinska (42), OneCoin’s Head of Legal and Compliance, pled guilty to charges related to conspiracies of wire fraud and money laundering last November. She was caught and extradited from Bulgaria to the United States in March 2023.
According to a statement from the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), Dilkinska participated in its day-to-day operations and engaged in money laundering for OneCoin instead of ensuring compliance with the law. This included orchestrating the transfer of $110 million in fraudulently obtained OneCoin proceeds to a Cayman Islands entity.
US Attorney Damian Williams said, “Irina Dilkinska’s involvement in the sprawling OneCoin pyramid scheme was a flagrant breach of conduct. Rather than upholding the law and embracing her position as the Head of Legal and Compliance, she facilitated and committed money laundering, aiding in the exploitation of millions of victims. As Dilkinska learned today, this Office will hold accountable every perpetrator of the OneCoin scheme, no matter where they may hide.”
In addition to the prison sentence, Dilkinska was sentenced to one month of supervised release and ordered to forfeit $111,440,000.
Launched in 2014 and headquartered in Sofia, Bulgaria, OneCoin promoted and traded a deceitful cryptocurrency under the same name using a worldwide multi-level marketing (“MLM”) strategy.
According to Crypto Potato, due to misleading information about OneCoin, investors poured over $4 billion into the fraudulent cryptocurrency. Dilinska had previously admitted guilt to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Mark Scott, previously a partner at Locke Lord, a US law firm, received a 10-year prison term in November 2019 for his participation in OneCoin. Scott was convicted of conspiracy to commit money laundering and bank fraud.
In addition to the prison sentence, US District Judge Edgardo Ramos instructed Scott to forfeit $392,940,000 in assets, including bank accounts, a yacht, two Porsche cars, and four real estate holdings.
Meanwhile, Ruja Ignatova vanished in October 2017 after receiving a tip-off regarding escalating police investigations into OneCoin.
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