The U.S. Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against two men, accusing them of operating and promoting a cryptocurrency investment scheme called OmegaPro, which has defrauded investors of over $650 million.
The U.S. Department of Justice announced on Tuesday (July 8) that they unsealed indictments against Michael Shannon Sims (allegedly the founder, strategic advisor, and promoter of OmegaPro) and Juan Carlos Reynoso (allegedly responsible for the company's operations in Latin America) in federal court in Puerto Rico.
Matthew Galeotti, head of the Criminal Division of the Justice Department, stated, "These two suspects targeted vulnerable populations both domestically and internationally, defrauding them of over $650 million through false promises of high returns and guarantees of fund safety."
According to the Justice Department's allegations, OmegaPro was a multi-level marketing scheme targeting cryptocurrency investors from 2019 to 2023, primarily selling so-called "investment packages."
The department stated that Sims and Reynoso promised investors that these investment packages would generate a 300% return on investment within 16 months through foreign exchange trading activities conducted by so-called "elite traders."
Investigations revealed that participants were required to purchase these investment packages using cryptocurrency.
The allegations claim that the two suspects employed deceptive marketing tactics and "held lavish OmegaPro promotional events and training sessions worldwide," including promotional methods such as projecting the company logo on the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai.
The Justice Department noted that the two also flaunted expensive vacation experiences, luxury cars, and high-end goods on social media, "with the aim of convincing existing and potential investors that OmegaPro is a legitimate business capable of providing a pathway to wealth and a luxurious lifestyle."
According to the Justice Department, OmegaPro announced in January 2023 that it had suffered a cyberattack and assured customers that their investments were safe, claiming that the Dubai-based company was transferring funds to another platform, Broker Group.
However, prosecutors allege that investors were actually unable to withdraw funds from any platform, as the money had been transferred to insiders via cryptocurrency wallets.
Sims and Reynoso face charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering, with each charge carrying a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
OmegaPro co-founder Andreas Szakacs was arrested in Turkey in July 2024, accused of defrauding investors of $4 billion through the company, but he denied the allegations.
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Original: “U.S. Charges Two Over $650M OmegaPro Crypto Scam”
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