Former Goliath Ventures CEO Christopher Alexander Delgado pleaded guilty to his role in a cryptocurrency investment scheme that prosecutors said raised at least $400 million from investors.
On Tuesday, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) he said Goliath promised investors monthly returns generated from digital asset liquidity pools between January 2023 and January 2026.
Prosecutors said the funds were instead used to pay earlier investors, process payouts, fund luxury expenses and fund business events.
Delgado pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, as well as wire fraud and money laundering. In the settlement, he admitted that the scheme caused investor losses of at least $250 million and agreed to forfeit a broad portfolio of luxury assets purchased with investor funds.
According to the Department of Justice, Delgado agreed to surrender eight properties, 11 vehicles, 30 watches, more than 50 luxury bags and wallets, at least 29 pieces of jewelry, and bank accounts and cryptocurrency wallets. He faces up to 20 years in prison for each fraud count and up to 10 years for money laundering.
Delgado’s sentencing is scheduled for October 8.
Extract from the complaint agreement. Source: Department of Justice
The guilty plea follows Delgado’s public apology
The allegation follows Delgado’s television appearance and public apology to investors. On May 12, Delgado appeared in an interview with Florida television station WFTV. He said then that investors trusted him and he let them down, claiming he had voluntarily returned to the US and was cooperating with the authorities.
Delgado said there was only about $160,000 left in the company’s bank account at the time of the arrest, and added that other former associates were involved in the operation.
Related: Florida man pleads guilty to promoting $1.8 billion “HyperFund” crypto scam
The case also came under scrutiny for the financial institutions that processed Goliath’s funds. On March 12, investors filed a proposed class action lawsuit against JPMorgan Chase, accusing the bank of ignoring suspicious transactions and allowing Goliath to pool investors’ funds through its accounts.
The lawsuit alleged that approximately $253 million passed through the JPMorgan account, including approximately $123 million later transferred to Goliath wallets on Coinbase. So does a separate federal complaint identified flows through Bank of America and directly to Coinbase wallets.
