Things have certainly gone from bad to worse for the BitConnect Ponzi scheme. After defrauding hundreds of investors, the company decided to pull the plug on its operation and the associated exchange. With so many people left in the dust, it was only a matter of time until the lawsuits started piling up. So far, we have seen a total of four lawsuits filed against BitConnect in various regions. It is evident this company will continue to face a lot of backlash over its business venture.
Four BitConnect Lawsuits Have Appeared
Anyone who dislikes BitConnect or lost money in this notorious Ponzi scheme will be glad to learn that lawsuits are being filed as we speak. More specifically, there are now four different lawsuits against this project and its parent companies. The most recent litigation was filed in Minnesota around a week ago. Patricia Mengesha wants to hold BitConnect accountable for tricking investors by running a well-coordinated investment scam. It is evident a lot of people lost money due to this project, even though they mainly have themselves to blame in this regard.
According to the lawsuit, BitConnect scammed “thousands of Minnesotans” and “hundreds of thousands of Americans”. While these claims are rather bold, no one will deny that BitConnect attracted a lot of attention throughout 2017. Even though most people knew it was a scam, some took the risk in the hopes of making good money. That decision has backfired for a lot of people, which was to be expected. Mengesha herself invested a total of US$12,770 into BitConnect, all of which was reduced to a few hundred dollars in the end.
This lawsuit comes on the heels of Paul Long and Kiandra Love’s similar lawsuit against BitConnect. They’ve also targeted Ryan Maasen, one of the Ponzi scheme’s most active promoters on YouTube. By making investors believe they will obtain an interest-bearing asset, a lot of people were tricked into buying BCC over the months. Especially with all cryptocurrency markets rising last year, the promises made by BitConnect seemed more than legitimate to these plaintiffs. Both had invested several thousand dollars into BitConnect and saw their earnings reduced by 90% or more when the scam shut down.
A class action lawsuit against this Ponzi was filed in late January. A temporary restraining order was subsequently issued, which made a lot of headlines. That lawsuit was filed in Kentucky and accused BitConnect of scamming thousands of people in the state. The lawsuit also names Ryan Maasen, who is quickly becoming one of the most wanted people in the world of online fraud. Promoting a notorious Ponzi scheme on YouTube will eventually catch up with you, to say the least.
All this drama was set in motion by the first BitConnect lawsuit filed in Florida. Several victims joined forces and filed a lawsuit representing their combined US$771,000 in losses. Unlike the others, this lawsuit specifically goes after BitConnect and five individual YouTube promoters. This list includes Trevon James, CryptoNick, Glenn Arcaro, Ryan Hildreth, and Craig Grant. It is evident this is only the beginning of the end of the notorious Ponzi scheme and anyone who has publicly recruited investors through referral marketing. We can only hope all victims recover their money in one way or another, but that seems highly unlikely at this stage.
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