CFTC Charges US Resident with $7M Bitcoin Fraud

The United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) charged a United States resident with a $7 million Bitcoin (BTC)-related fraud.

In an official news release published on Sept. 30, the regulator revealed that Jon Barry Thompson of Easton, Pennsylvania, is charged with “knowingly or recklessly making false representations to customers in connection with the purported purchase of Bitcoins worth over $7 million.”

“Knowingly or recklessly”

The official document alleges that — contrary to his claims — neither Thompson nor a company with which he was affiliated had possession or control over the Bitcoins that he pledged to deliver to two clients.

The agency claims that after receiving the clients’ funds, Thompson sent virtually all of the money to some third parties. The purported BTC was not delivered to the clients while their funds were not safeguarded as promised.

Thompson is further accused of having lied to the customers about the location of the Bitcoins, the…