US Prosecutors Seek Long Sentence for Executive in Shadow Crypto Banking Case that has been going on for five years.
On April 18, US Attorney Damian Williams filed a pre-sentencing request for Reginald Fowler, which is scheduled for April 20.
Fowler, a former minority owner of the NFL team Minnesota Vikings, was originally arrested in 2019 and charged with bank fraud, illegal money transfers and conspiracy related to shadow banking practices. about his alleged operation of an unlicensed money transmission business.
On behalf of the government, Williams is seeking a sentence of at least seven years in prison.. However, it suggests a range of between 15 and 20 years to reflect the seriousness of the crime.
Fowler established a firm called Global Trading Solutions (GTS) in 2018 under the umbrella of Panama-based Crypto Capital Corp, an alleged shadow crypto bank.
He was charged with acting as an unlicensed money transmitter and deceiving financial institutions. Through Crypto Capital, he allegedly provided shadow banking services to various crypto exchanges, including Bitfinex, Binance, CEX.io, and QuadrigaCX.
Between February and October 2018, GTS and Crypto Capital processed approximately $750 million in cryptocurrency transactions, providing unlicensed crypto companies with illegal access to the US banking system, according to the presentation.
Iván Manuel Molina Lee, the head of Crypto Capital, was arrested in 2019 on suspicion of money laundering and being involved in a Colombian drug cartel.
Crypto Capital was a key player in the court case involving Bitfinex’s failure to disclose the loss of $850 million in client funds. That case was settled in February 2022, and the companies were ordered to pay $18.5 million in civil penalties and shut down New York business operations.
In 2020, Fowler pleaded not guilty to all charges and was released on $5 million bail, however, he changed his plea to guilty in April 2022. As Fowler’s sentencing nears, Williams concluded:
“Reginald Fowler has committed serious crimes. Only a significant term of imprisonment, of at least 84 months in prison, could reflect that seriousness, promote respect for the law, and offer an adequate deterrent.”
In September 2022, Fowler requested a six-month deferral citing a serious medical problem.
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