Oh, the tangled web of deception! Picture this: victims thought they were rolling in fake profits through a slick online portal, only to be met with a series of sorry delays and sneaky fees when they tried to cash out.
Fast forward to October 15, 2024, and the jig was up for Juan Tacuri, a key player in the infamous cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme known as Forcount. This Florida resident got slammed with a 20-year federal prison sentence and a year of supervised release. That's not all – he had to kiss goodbye to a fancy house bought with the scam's dirty money, along with $3.6 million in assets. Add to that a whopping restitution payment to the victims, and you’ve got a real-life drama.
Turns out, Forcount was a global bandit, cleverly targeting Spanish-speaking communities in the U.S. and beyond. Under its later guise as Weltsys, it spun tales of guaranteed riches from cryptocurrency mining and trading, luring unsuspecting investors with promises of doubling their money in just six months. But surprise, surprise – there was no mining, no trading, just a classic Ponzi scheme at work. New investors’ funds were shuffled around to pay the old-timers while Tacuri and crew lived large on everyone else's dime.
Tacuri, a master of persuasion at 46, pocketed millions, splurging on swanky real estate and luxury goods. He toured the U.S., hosting glitzy expos and community gatherings, donning designer duds to dazzle potential investors. With promises of financial freedom and tales of his own ‘success,' he reeled in more victims than a fisherman in a stocked pond.
Investors watched their imaginary fortunes grow via a bogus online platform, but when they tried to withdraw, they hit a brick wall. Complaints started bubbling up back in 2018, but Tacuri and his team dodged them with lame excuses and extra charges.
Desperate to keep the con afloat, Forcount dangled their own worthless cryptocurrency tokens called “Mindexcoin,” promising future value. Spoiler alert: they tanked, leaving investors even deeper in the red.
By 2021, the scheme had finally crumbled, leaving a trail of empty pockets and broken dreams. Over 20 victims bared their souls with impact statements at Tacuri’s sentencing, sharing stories of financial ruin.
In December 2022, the U.S. Department of Justice swooped in, charging Tacuri along with his partners in crime, Francisley Da Silva and Antonia Perez Hernandez. Tacuri and Silva faced extra heat for conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Tacuri, eventually seeing the writing on the wall, pleaded guilty in June 2024. He stood before the eminent U.S. District Judge Annalisa Torres, who famously ruled on the programmatic XRP sales in 2023. And there he awaited his fate, marking the end of a twisted tale of greed and deceit.
