Rowland Marcus Andrade, founder of the AML Bitcoin cryptocurrency, has been convicted of wire fraud and money laundering in connection with the fraudulent marketing and sale of the coin. The ruling comes after a five-week jury trial in the District Court of Northern California.
Andrade made false claims during his efforts to raise money for the coin in 2017 and 2018. Among the false claims made about the coin was that AML Bitcoin was technologically superior to Bitcoin and the Panama Canal Authority was close to allowing ships to use AML Bitcoin to pay fees. AML Bitcoin was never launched.
Andrade used ‘outrageous lies’ to commit fraud
Evidence presented at the trial showed that Andrade used over $2 million for personal purposes, including the purchase of property and luxury cars after he “laundered investor funds through various bank accounts.”
“Mr. Andrade’s outrageous lies lured and scammed individuals into investing their hard-earned money into a new cryptocurrency with fabricated features. But there is nothing advanced about this scheme. Rowland Marcus Andrade stole money from innocent people and used it to further his personal wealth,” U.S. Internal Revenue Service special agent Linda Nguyen said in a statement.
Andrade will be sentenced in July. He faces up to 20 years imprisonment on the fraud charge and 10 years for money laundering. In addition, he will forfeit the property he obtained improperly.
The SEC charged Andrade with fraud and securities violations
The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a civil suit simultaneously against Andrade in the same court for fraudulent unregistered securities sales. That case was stayed in 2021 pending the completion of the criminal case.
The SEC charged the NAC Foundation, issuer of AML Bitcoin, along with Andrade personally and political lobbyist Jack Abramoff, with raising $5.6 million from 2,400 investors. In the 2020 charges, Andrade allegedly used $1.1 million for personal purposes. Abramoff apparently acted as a colleague of Andrade in the purported coin issue.
Andrade and Abramoff were charged with violating the antifraud and securities registration laws. Abramoff was also charged with broker-dealer registration violations. Abramoff agreed to plead guilty in that case in a plea agreement. He paid over $50,000 in disgorgement.
Abramoff is familiar to many as a Republican lobbyist who was later jailed for corruption. He served four years of a six-year sentence. The film Casino Jack was based on him.
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