One
of
the
top
promoters
in
the
Forcount
crypto
ponzi
scheme
–
a
Brazil-based
scam
that
bilked
Spanish-speaking
investors
around
the
world
of
a
collective
$8.4
million
–
has
pleaded
guilty
to
his
role
in
the
operation,
federal
prosecutors
announced
Wednesday.
Juan
Tacuri,
46,
of
Florida,
pleaded
guilty
to
one
count
of
conspiracy
to
commit
wire
fraud
in
the
Southern
District
of
New
York
(SDNY),
a
charge
which
carries
a
maximum
sentence
of
20
years
in
prison.
Tacuri
also
agreed
to
forfeit
nearly
$4
million
back
to
his
victims,
as
well
as
real
estate
purchased
with
victim
funds
as
part
of
his
plea
deal.
Tacuri
and
other
promoters
promised
investors
that
their
investments
in
Forcount
–
a
purported
crypto
mining
and
trading
company
–
would
double
within
six
months.
But,
according
to
prosecutors,
Forcount
was
never
doing
any
mining
or
trading
–
Tacuri
and
his
associates
were
simply
using
new
investors’
money
to
pay
back
earlier
investors
and
enrich
themselves,
spending
lavishly
on
luxury
goods
and
real
estate.
Prosecutors
say
Tacuri
traveled
throughout
the
U.S.
hosting
“lavish
expos”
to
find
new
investors,
drawing
them
in
with
promises
of
“achieving
financial
freedom”
and
“boast[ing]
about
the
amount
of
money
he
was
earning,
including
by
wearing
designer
clothing
to
such
events.”
In
2022,
the
U.S.
Securities
and
Exchange
Commission
(SEC)
filed
civil
charges
against
Tacuri
and
three
other
members
of
the
scheme
with
violating
the
Securities
Act
–
a
parallel
action
to
the
criminal
charges
against
Tacuri
and
his
associates
in
New
York.
Last
year,
two
other
Forcount
promoters
were
arrested
and
charged
with
fraud
for
their
role
in
the
scheme.
Tacuri
is
set
to
be
sentenced
in
New
York
on
Sept.
24
by
District
Judge
Analisa
Torres,
the
same
judge
who
is
overseeing
the
U.S.
Securities
and
Exchange
Commission’s
(SEC)
suit
against
crypto
firm
Ripple.