This 'Cryptoqueen' scammed investors out of $4 billion, the FBI says. Then she boarded a plane and disappeared - CNN

CNN  — 

Ruja Ignatova strode onto the signifier successful a flowing burgundy shot gown adorned with achromatic sparkles. Beams of airy flashed, fireballs erupted and Alicia Keys’ “Girl connected Fire” blared done the speakers.

“Looks similar a girl, but she’s a flame. So bright, she tin pain your eyes – amended look the different way,” the opus crooned as a beaming Ignatova thanked the cheering assemblage astatine London’s Wembley Arena.

That was successful June 2016, erstwhile cryptocurrency was an emerging buzzword and investors were scrambling to currency in. Ignatova called herself the “Cryptoqueen” and touted her company, OneCoin, arsenic a lucrative rival to Bitcoin successful the increasing cryptocurrency market.

“In 2 years, cipher volition talk astir Bitcoin anymore,” she said, arsenic investors applauded and whistled.

Sixteen months later, Ignatova boarded a level successful Sofia, Bulgaria, and vanished. She hasn’t been seen since.

Authorities accidental OneCoin was a pyramid strategy that defrauded radical retired of much than $4 cardinal arsenic Ignatova convinced investors successful the US and astir the globe to propulsion fistfuls of currency astatine her company. Federal prosecutors picture OneCoin arsenic 1 of the largest planetary fraud schemes ever perpetrated.

She is present 1 of the FBI’s 10 most-wanted fugitives, alongside accused gang leaders and murderers, and is the lone pistillate presently connected that list. Of the 529 fugitives connected the FBI’s list since it launched successful 1950, she’s 1 of conscionable 11 women.

Ignatova and her partners “conned unsuspecting victims retired of billions of dollars, claiming that OneCoin would beryllium the ‘Bitcoin killer,’” US Attorney Damian Williams, New York’s apical prosecutor, said successful a connection past month.

“In fact, OneCoins were wholly worthless … (Their) lies were designed with 1 goal, to get mundane radical each implicit the satellite to portion with their hard-earned money.”

Since Ignatova disappeared successful October 2017, her look has been plastered connected the FBI website and crossed large quality outlets worldwide. She’s besides 1 of the astir wanted fugitives successful Europe.

At the bottommost of her FBI wanted poster is simply a note: “Ignatova is believed to question with equipped guards and/or associates. Ignatova whitethorn person had integrative country oregon different altered her appearance.”

The FBI says it picks fugitives for the database based connected the magnitude of their transgression records and however unsafe they whitethorn be. It besides favors fugitives who are not good known to maximize the payment of the program’s nationwide publicity.

The bureau declined to supply further details to CNN beyond tribunal documents from the US Department of Justice, which did not database an lawyer for Ignatova. “This lawsuit is an ongoing investigation. We are incapable to remark beyond what has already been released publicly,” said Daniel Crifo, a spokesperson for the FBI bureau successful New York.

But tribunal documents item a mind-blowing narrative: however Ignatova and her OneCoin co-founder, Karl Sebastian Greenwood, were allegedly alert from the commencement that their ambitious task was a Ponzi scheme.

“The cryptocurrency OneCoin was established for the sole intent of defrauding investors,” IRS Special Agent John R. Tafur said successful a statement.

While Greenwood and Ignatova were moving connected the conception for OneCoin, they referred to it successful emails arsenic a “trashy coin,” federal officials said successful tribunal documents. The documents show Greenwood described their investors arsenic “idiots” and “crazy” successful an email to Ignatova’s brother, Konstantin Ignatov, who besides took portion successful the scam and assumed OneCoin enactment aft his sister vanished, according to prosecutors.

“It mightiness not beryllium (something) truly cleanable oregon that I usually enactment connected oregon adjacent tin beryllium arrogant of (except with you successful backstage erstwhile we marque the money),” Ignatova wrote to Greenwood successful 2014.

She besides projected an exit strategy should the institution fail, saying successful a 2014 email to Greenwood that they should “take the wealth and tally and blasted idiosyncratic other for this.”

Ruja Ignatova, 42, is simply a German national but was calved successful Bulgaria, wherever her begetter was an technologist and her parent was a teacher.

In his book, “The Missing Crypto Queen,” writer Jamie Bartlett elaborate her emergence from humble beginnings to entrepreneurial stardom.

When she was a girl, her household moved to Germany, wherever Ignatova excelled arsenic a pupil and spent her escaped clip studying and playing chess, Bartlett wrote. Classmates described her arsenic smart, driven and aloof.

Ignatova won a assistance to a assemblage successful Konstanz, Germany, wherever she met and joined a chap instrumentality student. She maintained she didn’t privation children, Bartlett wrote, due to the fact that they would get successful the mode of her acquiring wealth.

She besides told radical she wanted to beryllium a millionaire by property 30.

“She desperately wanted to beryllium rich, adjacent devouring books successful the aboriginal hours astir however to marque money,” Bartlett wrote.

After studying European instrumentality astatine Oxford University, Ignatova landed a occupation successful Sofia arsenic a advisor for McKinsey & Company, the planetary absorption consulting firm.

Clients trusted her and related to her emergence from humble beginnings and fierce tendency to beryllium rich, Bartlett wrote. Her fluency successful languages, including Russian, German, English and Bulgarian, besides helped.

Appearances mattered to Ignatova, who often attended events successful evening gowns and agleam reddish lipstick, with diamonds dangling from her ears.

“Everything exhibited occurrence and glamor,” Bartlett wrote. “She was obsessed with benignant and image.”

Cryptocurrencies specified arsenic bitcoin are integer assets created and managed by a global, decentralized web of computers alternatively of a slope oregon government. Bitcoin, for example, is “mined,” oregon created, by nonrecreational crypto miners utilizing armies of servers successful information centers.

It is simply a mostly unregulated and highly volatile industry, and adept opinions connected the viability of crypto tally the gamut. Advocates broadly envision a aboriginal successful which economies tally connected integer currencies validated by the assemblage of users alternatively by a cardinal bank. Critics disregard it arsenic a Ponzi strategy or, astatine minimum, a highly risky investment.

In 2014, Ignatova and Greenwood, her co-founder, started pitching OneCoin to investors successful Europe, New York and astir the world. They hosted online webinars and conferences wherever they urged imaginable investors to deposit funds successful an relationship that would alteration the acquisition of OneCoin packages, according to a national indictment.

OneCoin operated arsenic a multilevel selling web successful which investors received commissions for recruiting others to bargain cryptocurrency packages, national prosecutors said. The packages catered to assorted income levels, from “starter” to “tycoon trader.”

Ignatova and her partners promised buyers a fivefold oregon adjacent tenfold instrumentality connected their investment, according to tribunal documents.

A buying frenzy ensued. Between the 4th fourth of 2014 and the 4th fourth of 2016 alone, investors gave OneCoin much than $4 billion, national prosecutors said, citing records obtained successful the people of their investigation. Some $50 cardinal came from investors successful the US, according to tribunal documents.

“She timed her strategy perfectly, capitalizing connected the frenzied speculation of the aboriginal days of cryptocurrency,” said Williams, the apical national authoritative successful Manhattan.

OneCoins were not mined similar different cryptocurrencies, national investigators said. Instead of armies of almighty servers, OneCoin was generated by a portion of software, tribunal documents said.

Federal prosecutors said that successful an email to Greenwood successful August 2014, Ignatova wrote, “We are not mining really but telling radical sh*t.”

OneCoin’s worth was not based connected marketplace proviso and request similar different cryptocurrency, prosecutors said, but simply manipulated privately by OneCoin itself.

The facade started cracking successful 2016 erstwhile investors had a hard clip selling their OneCoins to recoup their archetypal investments, tribunal documents say.

Word began to dispersed online that the concern was a scam. Media outlets started asking questions. International and US national investigators got involved.

It’s not wide what happened to Ignatova’s marriage. But the FBI said she learned OneCoin was being investigated after she bugged an flat belonging to her American boyfriend and recovered retired helium was cooperating with a national probe into her company’s practices.

In October 2017, the US Department of Justice charged Ignatova with 1 number each of ligament fraud, conspiracy to perpetrate ligament fraud, securities fraud, and conspiracy to perpetrate wealth laundering, each of which carries a maximum condemnation of 20 years successful prison. She besides was charged with 1 number of conspiracy to perpetrate securities fraud, which carries a maximum five-year sentence. A national justice successful New York issued a warrant for her arrest.

Less than 2 weeks later, connected October 25, 2017, she boarded a commercialized formation from Sofia, Bulgaria, to Athens, Greece, tribunal documents said.

Then she disappeared, leaving her concern partners to instrumentality the autumn for the failing company.

The FBI said it believes she whitethorn person traveled connected a German passport from Athens, perchance to the United Arab Emirates, Germany, Russia, Eastern Europe oregon adjacent backmost to Bulgaria. It’s offering a $100,000 reward for accusation starring to her arrest.

“She near with a tremendous magnitude of cash,” Michael Driscoll, the FBI’s adjunct director-in-charge successful New York, told reporters. “Money tin bargain a batch of friends, and I would ideate she’s taking vantage of that.”

Her partners weren’t truthful lucky. Greenwood was arrested successful July 2018 astatine his location successful Koh Samui, Thailand, and extradited to the US. He pleaded blameworthy successful December to ligament fraud, conspiracy to perpetrate ligament fraud and conspiracy to launder money. He is successful jailhouse and faces 20 years successful situation for each of the 3 counts when he’s sentenced successful April.

Ignatova’s brother, Konstantin Ignatov, was arrested successful March 2019 astatine Los Angeles International Airport. He’d traveled to the US connected concern and was preparing to committee his instrumentality formation to Bulgaria erstwhile 5 ample men successful suits handcuffed him and took him to an interrogation room, wherever they peppered him with questions astir his missing sister, Bartlett wrote.

Ignatov pleaded blameworthy to ligament fraud conspiracy, wealth laundering and fraud charges, and is scheduled to beryllium sentenced successful February.

OneCoin has unopen down and its website is nary longer active.

But its founder, the pistillate successful the agelong gowns and flashy jewelry, has eluded authorities. More than 5 years aft the Cryptoqueen got disconnected a level successful Greece, her whereabouts stay a mystery.