US DOJ Requests 20-Year Prison Sentence for Alex Mashinsky, Founder of Celsius

The US Department of Justice has requested a strict prison sentence for Alex Mashinsky, the founder and former CEO of Celsius, due to his role in the operations of the now-defunct cryptocurrency lending platform.

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has requested a twenty-year prison sentence for Alex Mashinsky, the founder and former CEO of Celsius, for his role in the operations of the now-defunct cryptocurrency lending platform.

According to the DOJ, Mashinsky’s actions were not merely negligent but deliberate, as indicated in parts of his defense, which the DOJ said was an attempt to downplay his role in the fraud.

However, the DOJ has requested the court to sentence Mashinsky to twenty years in prison for his role in the Celsius fraud, which resulted in the loss of billions of dollars in investor funds.

The DOJ submitted a 97-page sentencing memorandum on April 28, arguing for this recommendation and highlighting that victims of the scheme have been unable to withdraw their cryptocurrencies since the platform suspended operations.

In the memo, the DOJ stated, “The Court should sentence Alexander Mashinsky to twenty years’ imprisonment as just punishment for his years-long campaign of lies and self-dealing that left in its wake billions in losses and thousands of victimized customers.”

Mashinsky Pled Guilty

This follows Mashinsky’s plea of guilty to two criminal counts, including one count of “misrepresenting the safety and liquidity of customer deposits” and one count of price manipulation of Celsius’s token, CEL, to artificially increase the price of the coin and improve his wealth.

In his plea, Mashinsky admitted to leading operations at Celsius and being fully aware of the criminal activities taking place. He also confessed to siphoning over $48 million into his personal accounts.

Based on this admission, the DOJ concluded that Mashinsky intentionally deceived investors and misappropriated their funds.

Scams in the crypto world are unfortunately widespread, but it’s clear that authorities and the global community are taking them more seriously.

For instance, ZachXBT, a well-known crypto investigator, recently discovered a suspicious transaction involving 3,520 BTC, valued at $330.7 million. The Bitcoin was allegedly stolen and laundered through multiple exchanges, finally being swapped for Monero (XMR).

This resulted in a 50% price surge in XMR, highlighting the increasing scrutiny on such activities.