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Attorney in $400 Million OneCoin Fraud Case Refused New Trial Following False Testimony from Witness: Report
Despite misleading testimony from a prosecution witness associated with the “Cryptoqueen” fugitive Ruja Ignatova, Mark Scott, the attorney who channeled $400 million from the OneCoin cryptocurrency scam, will not be granted a new trial.
On Monday, US District Judge Edgardo Ramos denied Scott’s motion for a retrial. The 54-year-old was convicted in November 2019 of conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to commit bank fraud. He is also alleged to have gained $50 million by creating a fraudulent investment fund that enabled Ignatova to divert funds from the $4 billion fraud.
Throughout the trial, Scott asserted that he was unaware of OneCoin’s deceptive activities.
Lawyer Denied Trial
As reported by Bloomberg, the judge’s ruling against the new trial request paves the way for Scott’s sentencing.
Scott, a former partner at Locke Lord LLP, reportedly used the illicit funds to support a lavish lifestyle, which included acquiring a 57-foot yacht, multimillion-dollar properties in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and indulging in luxury watches and cars, including three Porsches, as detailed by prosecutors.
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United States District Judge Edgardo Ramos dismissed the lawyers’ request for a new trial, indicating skepticism that “an innocent person might have been wrongly convicted,” even considering the false testimony provided by Konstantin Ignatov during the 2019 trial.
Ignatov, a government witness who admitted to aiding his sister Ruja Ignatova in the OneCoin fraud, had given false testimony.
In the meantime, Arlo Devlin-Brown, Scott’s attorney, announced intentions to appeal Judge Ramos’ decision, expressing dissatisfaction with the court’s refusal to allow a new trial. In an emailed statement, he remarked,
“We are disappointed that the court did not grant a new trial given the undisputed evidence that the Government’s sole cooperating witness perjured himself.”
OneCoin Scam
OneCoin is recognized as one of the largest scams, defrauding $4 billion from 3.5 million victims since its inception in 2014 in Bulgaria. While Ruja “CryptoQueen” Ignatova remains at large and is a fugitive on the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) Most Wanted list, several other individuals connected to the infamous scam are either facing charges, have been convicted, or are currently evading law enforcement.
Earlier this year, US authorities charged Irina Dilkinska, the former Head of Legal and Compliance at OneCoin, accusing her of participating in the scam. She was later extradited from Bulgaria to the United States.
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