According to Cointelegraph, Roni Cohen-Pavon, the former chief revenue officer of cryptocurrency lending firm Celsius, has pleaded guilty to charges related to fraud and price manipulation. The guilty plea was submitted in a Sept. 13 filing in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. Cohen-Pavon admitted to conspiracy to commit price manipulation, securities fraud, manipulation of security prices, and wire fraud. He will remain free on bail until a Dec. 11 sentencing hearing.
The guilty plea is part of an agreement with prosecutors requiring Cohen-Pavon to make restitution to parties affected by the collapse of Celsius. Former CEO Alex Mashinsky allegedly made roughly $42 million in profits from sales of the Celsius (CEL) token by artificially inflating the price, while Cohen-Pavon earned approximately $3.6 million. The U.S. Justice Department announced charges against the two former Celsius executives in July.
Mashinsky pleaded not guilty to all charges and is currently free on a $40 million bond. Amid the legal proceedings, a federal judge allowed U.S. authorities to freeze some of Mashinsky's assets, including certain bank accounts and an Austin, Texas property. Celsius Network's bankruptcy case, filed in July 2022, was ongoing at the time of publication. A settlement plan proposed in August will go before a bankruptcy judge in October.