Three Men Arrested in $722 Million Cryptocurrency Fraud Scheme

NOTE: A fourth defendant, Silviu Catalin Balaci, was arrested in Germany after the issuance of this press release. The attached indictment has been amended to reflect this.


NEWARK, N.J. – Three men were arrested today in connection with a cryptocurrency mining scheme that defrauded investors of $722 million, U.S. Attorney Craig Carpenito announced.

Matthew Brent Goettsche, 37, of Lafayette, Colorado, and Jobadiah Sinclair Weeks, 38, of Arvada, Colorado, are charged by indictment with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and Goettsche, Weeks, and Joseph Frank Abel, 49, of Camarillo, California, are charged by indictment with conspiracy to offer and sell unregistered securities. Goettsche was arrested in Colorado, Weeks in Florida, and Abel in California. All three are scheduled to have their initial appearances in the districts of their arrests. Two defendants remain at large and their identities remain under seal.

“The indictment describes the defendants’ use of the complex world of cryptocurrency to take advantage of unsuspecting investors,” U.S. Attorney Carpenito said. “What they allegedly did amounts to little more than a modern, high-tech Ponzi scheme that defrauded victims of hundreds of millions of dollars. Working with our law enforcement partners here and across the country, we will ensure that these scammers are held to account for their crimes.”

“Those arrested today are accused of deploying elaborate tactics to lure thousands of victims with promises of large returns on their investments in a bitcoin mining pool, an advanced method of profiting on cryptocurrency,” Paul Delacourt, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office said. “The defendants allegedly made hundreds of millions of dollars by continuing to recruit new investors over several years while spending victims' money lavishly.”

Read more: https://www.justice.gov/usao-nj/pr/three-men-arrested-722-million-cryptocurrency-fraud-scheme