A pastor and his wife from Denver are facing serious charges in a crypto scam. Eli Regalado and his wife, Kaitlyn, are accused of defrauding over 300 investors of $3.4 million through their digital currency called INDXcoin. They used their church community to promote this currency from January 2022 to July 2023.
A $3.4M Crypto Scam
Eli and Kaitlyn Regalado’s case was heard in the Denver District Court. A grand jury indicted them today on 40 felony charges, including theft, securities fraud, and racketeering. Earlier, in January 2024, the court held civil proceedings, including a preliminary injunction and an asset freeze, which were presided over by Judge David Goldberg.
The Regalados supposedly encouraged people in their religious community to invest in INDXcoin, which they sold on their platform, Kingdom Wealth Exchange. Investigators claim that they spent approximately $1.3 million on personal expenses, including luxury items such as high-end handbags, snowmobiles, and lavish vacations.
The clergyman and his accomplice wife marketed INDXcoin mainly through their online church, Victorious Grace Church, making false promises of high returns. However, regulators have stated that the token is practically worthless. Colorado Securities Commissioner Tung Chan mentioned that the scheme exploited the trust of their Christian community.
A Crypto Space Dogged by Scam
The Regalados reportedly shut down the investment platform briefly to prevent investors from withdrawing their money and instructed them to hold their investments, claiming it was inspired by divine guidance.
The crypto space has experienced different forms of scam tactics, with attackers advancing from bad to worse by the day. Scam tactics include phishing and romance scams.
For example, an elderly American recently fell victim to a social engineering crypto scam, losing $330 million. This marks one of the largest crypto thefts ever. Similarly, last year, an unsuspecting user fell victim to an address-poisoning attack, resulting in a massive loss of over $2.9 million in PYTH tokens.
These cases expose the various gimmicks used by attackers to strip victims of their assets and funds. The Regalados’ actions highlight the importance of clear information and accountability in the digital asset world, particularly when targeting faith-based communities.
