If you haven’t heard of John Barksdale or Tina Barksdale before, I highly suggest you read this article about their alleged criminal offenses. This case is an example of a Ponzi scheme involving cryptocurrency. John Barksdale is currently facing several charges including conspiracy, securities fraud, and wire fraud. He organized roadshows all over the world to promote his scammy offerings. He essentially operated like a traveling salesman, peddling lies and overstatements about cryptocurrency. In all, at least twelve thousand people invested their money into Ormeus Coin.
The feds have accused the Barksdales of defrauding more than $124 million in cryptocurrency investments. The charges against John and Tina Barksdale include conspiracy and wire fraud. They also allegedly engaged in false and misleading marketing tactics, which led to the loss of tens of millions of dollars for investors. They are also being sued for violating federal securities laws by using misleading and deceptive marketing practices.
More than 20,000 people were ripped off by multilevel marketing scams involving cryptocurrency and cryptos. John and Tina Barksdale, and entities in Hong Kong and Panama, are facing criminal and regulatory action. They are accused of directing victims to invest in fraudulent projects. Despite the large amount of money involved, the scam is still thriving today, and the Feds are seeking to recover their money.
The charges against John and Tina Barksdale are related to an Ormeus Coin scam. The couple was accused of defrauding thousands of retail investors. The pair was arrested overseas, but a DOJ spokesperson declined to say where they were. However, a DOJ spokesperson refused to specify where they were arrested, but did say they are “under investigation” and that they are willing to cooperate with authorities.
The Barksdales are being charged with conspiracy to commit securities fraud and wire fraud. Both are US citizens. John and Tina Barksdale were arrested in Thailand in parallel criminal proceedings, but the government believes they will be extradited to the US. Tina Barksdale was working in the Hong Kong office of Ormeus and coordinated marketing videos and bank accounts. They are both being held without bail.
Despite these allegations, it’s important to keep in mind that Ormeus’ slogan is “E Pluribus Aurum Facit.” The phrase means “Out of many, one makes gold.” But this scam isn’t the biggest crypto-related scandal of this year, nor is it likely to be the biggest of next. The company was simply not doing what it promised. So, we need to keep our eyes open to any future controversies.
