The Federal Court sentenced businessman Francisley Valdevino da Silva, known as the “Bitcoin Sheik”. He must serve 56 years, 4 months and 10 days in prison for involvement in cryptocurrency fraud.

The decision came out on Wednesday (9), in the 23rd Federal Court of Curitiba, where he lived.

Bitcoin Sheikh Sentenced to Prison

The sentence also convicted five other people. They received sentences ranging from 11 to 48 years in prison. They are lesser because, according to the Federal Police (PF), the Sheik of Bitcoins was the commander of the scheme.

Francisley was convicted of fraudulently managing a financial institution, appropriating money or diverting it for personal gain, issuing or trading securities or assets without prior registration and concealing assets.

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His arrest took place in 2022, but the businessman began responding to the process in freedom from June 2023. The problem is that, according to the PF, he resumed illegal operations involving former employees.

This was a violation of the court's precautionary measures, which resulted in a new arrest. The judge in the case, Nivaldo Brunoni, ordered that he remain in custody.

How did the scheme work?

The Bitcoin Sheik’s scheme involved using lectures to attract new victims. These events featured fake testimonials from people who claimed they had made money by using the company to invest in cryptocurrencies;

The promise was returns of up to 2.8% per day and doubled amounts in six months. However, as is often the case in pyramid schemes, the money was diverted to the criminals' accounts. It was then used to fund a life of luxury for them.

Eventually, the scheme began to implode when there was no money to pay the alleged earnings.

According to the Federal Police, the scheme also affected famous people. One example is Sasha Meneghel, daughter of TV presenter Xuxa. She reportedly lost around R$1.2 million. Soccer players whose names have not been released are also on the list of victims.

The investigations were assisted by the United States and Interpol. In that country, the police found losses of around R$30 million to the victims there alone.

In Brazil, victims of the Bitcoin Sheik continued to demand their money back from companies, but to no avail. Here, the estimated damages are approximately R$4 billion.

The article Bitcoin Sheikh Sentenced to 56 Years in Prison appeared first on BeInCrypto Brazil.