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Third Centra Tech Founder Pleads Guilty to ICO Fraud
Centra Tech one of the most storied scams of the the 2017 ICO bubble. Its founders have fallen like dominoes since.
By Danny Nelson
Updated Sep 14, 2021, 9:32 a.m. Published Jul 17, 2020, 8:58 p.m.
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U.S. prosecutors have secured a guilty plea from Sohrab Sharma, a co-founder of the Centra Tech initial coin offering (ICO) fraud.
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- As per the Friday plea, Sharma, 29, admitted that he and partners Raymond Trapani and Robert Farkas lied about their purportedly crypto-backed financial product's partnerships, licenses and leadership as it ripped off investors for $25 million. He also forfeited 10,000 in ethereum ($2,329,200).
- The trio touted celebrity endorsements and flashy investor promises while promoting their partnership at the height of the 2017 ICO bubble. But their apparent success and big-name claims quickly caught investigators' attention, and before long they faced a bevy of legal actions from regulators and investors alike.
- Sharma pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit securities fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit mail fraud.
- Farkas pleaded guilty in June, while Trapani did the same last year.
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