Vincent Mazzotta Jr., a 54-year-old man from Arizona, pleaded guilty to running a $13 million Ponzi scheme that tricked investors with false claims of crypto profits. He used aliases like “Vincent Midnight” to promise big returns from AI trading bots. Working with David Saffron, Mazzotta scammed victims and even created a fake company to obtain additional funds.
Man Admits to $13M Crypto Ponzi Scheme
Mazzotta admitted his guilt on July 28 for money laundering and conspiracy to obstruct justice. The court found that he misled investors about high-yield crypto profits. His Ponzi scheme operated under names like Mind Capital and Cloud9Capital, taking a total of $13 million from victims.
They also set up a fake company called Federal Crypto Reserve that charged fees for fake investigations. The court’s decision reflects the serious harm caused to many investors.
Mazzotta and Saffron tried to hide their crimes by destroying an iPad that had evidence and by falsifying records for Mazzotta’s business, Runway Beauty Inc. Despite their efforts, federal investigators found enough evidence to apprehend them.
The end of Mazzotta’s scheme highlights the risks of unregulated crypto investments. He faces up to 15 years in prison for money laundering and conspiracy, with sentencing set for December 15, 2025, in federal court.
Any Hope of Crypto Scam?
Mazzotta’s case is just one of many reported cases that have made the crypto environment murkier than ever. About a week ago, a pastor and his wife from Denver were facing serious charges in a crypto scam. Eli Regalado and his wife, Kaitlyn, were 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. He and his wife promised high returns through their INDXcoin platform but spent the money on luxury cars and vacations, leaving investors with nothing. These frequent cases of Ponzi schemes show a pattern of people taking advantage of trust in crypto schemes.
Meanwhile, authorities are making frantic efforts to reduce the frequency of scam cases, with harsh sentences handed down to deter perpetrators.
