AML Bitcoin creator convicted of wire fraud, money laundering

The founder of a cryptocurrency exchange whose namesake was tied to Anti-Money Laundering (AML) was found guilty of wire fraud and money laundering in a California court.

In a March 12 trial in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, a jury found AML Bitcoin creator Rowland Marcus Andrade guilty of two felony counts as part of a scheme to defraud investors. Authorities initially filed criminal charges against Andrade in June 2020 in parallel to a civil case filed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against the AML Bitcoin creator and the NAC Foundation, for which he was the founder and CEO.

“Mr. Andrade’s outrageous lies lured and scammed individuals into investing their hard-earned money into a new cryptocurrency with fabricated features,” said Linda Nguyen, the IRS Criminal Investigation Oakland Field Office Special Agent in Charge. “But there is nothing advanced about this scheme. Rowland Marcus Andrade stole money from innocent people and used it to further his personal wealth.”

The SEC’s civil case against Andrade was notable for the involvement of political lobbyist Jack Abramoff, who served four years in prison between 2006 and 2010 following his conviction on mail fraud, conspiracy to bribe public officials and tax evasion. A judge agreed to stay the SEC lawsuit in January 2021 until the conclusion of Andrade’s criminal case, suggesting that it may once again proceed soon.

The June 2020 indictment alleged the NAC Foundation claimed a cryptocurrency that AML Bitcoin would launch — it never did — would comply with money laundering and Know Your Customer (KYC) regulations. Andrade used those claims for an initial coin offering between 2017 and 2018. According to the information presented at his trial, the AML Bitcoin creator diverted more than $2 million in proceeds from the sale of the platform, spending it on real estate and luxury automobiles.

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“Andrade falsely claimed, among other misrepresentations, that the Panama Canal Authority was close to permitting AML Bitcoin to be used for ships passing through the Panama Canal when no such agreement existed,” said the Justice Department.

The AML Bitcoin creator is scheduled to return to court for a sentencing hearing on July 22, having remained free on a $75,000 bond since 2020 with some travel restrictions. He faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for the wire fraud count and 10 years for the money laundering count.

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