The Department of Justice announced criminal charges on Monday against two men and one woman accused of orchestrating the HyperFund cryptocurrency pyramid scheme scam which accumulated nearly $2 billion from investors globally before imploding last year.
The Securities and Exchange Commission brought additional civil charges against two figures connected to HyperFund – also known as HyperTech, HyperCapital, HyperVerse, and HyperNation. Authorities say the fraudulent crypto platform falsely claimed to generate returns for investors via mining operations that never actually existed.
Among those charged criminally is Australian Sam Lee who allegedly co-founded HyperFund and lives in Dubai. Additionally, HyperFund promoters Rodney Burton of Miami and Brenda Chunga of Maryland face charges tied to the scheme which saw Chunga earn over $3.7 million she used to recruit more victims.
Penalties for wire fraud, securities fraud, and money-transmitting conspiracy charges reach up to 5 years of prison time. The collapse has wiped out almost $2 billion from victims lured into the too-good-to-be-true investment promises.
The allegations continue a troubling trend of overhyped crypto projects revealing themselves as blunt Ponzi stratagems once the music stops. While innovation drives crypto adoption, the space remains prone to opportunistic fraud until better safeguards take hold.
