[California judge orders a man to pay $36 million for cryptocurrency and foreign exchange fraud] Mars Finance reported that according to a statement issued by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Friday, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California Judge Vince Chhabria ordered 30-year-old William Koo Ichioka to pay $31 million to victims and a $5 million civil penalty.

In June 2023, the CFTC charged Ichioka with misappropriating cryptocurrencies and forex funds such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of California and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission also filed lawsuits as part of parallel actions.

Ichioka, who claimed to have “started his quest early and has amassed a multi-million dollar fortune,” told investors that by participating in his commodity pool they would receive a 10 percent return every 30 business days, according to the judge’s order.

Ichioka used some of the investors’ money to invest in startup stocks, digital asset commodities and foreign exchange, but also “commingled participants’ funds with his own funds.” He used the money to pay for rent, restaurants, bars, taxis, gym memberships and luxury cars, according to the order.