Crypto Ponzi Scheme Mastermind Sentenced to 8 Years for $40M Fraud

Dwayne Golden, a 57-year-old from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced to over eight years in federal prison for orchestrating a $40 million cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme. The U.S. Department of Justice confirmed the sentencing by Judge William F. Kuntz II in Brooklyn.

Golden pleaded guilty in September 2024 to conspiracy charges involving wire fraud and money laundering. His fraudulent platforms—EmpowerCoin, ECoinPlus, and Jet-Coin—operated between April and August 2017, luring investors with promises of fixed profits from overseas crypto trading. No actual trading occurred.

Prosecutors revealed Golden and his co-conspirators diverted investor funds to pay earlier participants or for personal use, a hallmark of Ponzi schemes. The FBI noted the platforms raised over $40 million before collapsing.