A U.S. federal jury convicted a 48-year-old San Francisco resident, Japheth Dillman, of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud in connection with a fraudulent crypto trading fund, the Department of Justice announced Monday.
Dillman allegedly defrauded more than 20 investors of nearly $1 million by making false statements about Block Bits Capital, the trading fund he helped establish, the DOJ said in a statement.
According to court documents and evidence, Dillman and a co-conspirator misled investors about the capabilities and profitability of the fund.
Between June 2017 and August 2018, the two mainly claimed that the fund was using an automated crypto trading tool called the "Autotrader" that the firm had developed.
Dillman knew that the automated algorithm did not work.
