Although OneCoin is ostensibly a Bulgarian company, it is a global story. Ruja herself was both a Bulgarian and German national and grew up in the latter; Sebastian Greenwood was both a British and Swedish citizen. The earliest promoters were Finns and Swedes—most notably Juha Parhiala. While the HQ was technically in Sofia, her London, Hong Kong and Dubai offices were all important too. The top MLM pushers were the most diverse set of people you’ll ever meet: Italian brothers, born again American Christians, British Muslims, Ugandan doctors, Australian businessmen. Her companies and assets were dotted in every jurisdiction on earth: Malta, Frankfurt, Dubai, Sozopol, London, the Caymans, Florida. That was all part of the trick. The scam was global, but law enforcement is still limited by borders and jurisdictions. OneCoin slipped through the cracks, and it took years for the law to catch up with it.
But, as this book was going to print in spring 2022, it was finally getting there.
Mark Scott was the first, in November 2019, just one month after Konstantin signed the cooperation agreement. It took place in the famed Courtroom 318, a large ceremonial court with a high ceiling and wood-panelled walls, on the third floor of the federal courthouse in Foley Square, Manhattan. Despite the fact this was the biggest Ponzi scheme since Bernie Madoff, only a couple of bloggers showed up—the press weren’t that interested. The mainstream press thought OneCoin was a cryptocurrency story—far too complicated to excite the public. The specialized crypto press, by contrast, thought OneCoin was an old-fashioned Ponzi scheme, and so not really their business either. Even until the very end, OneCoin avoided detection.
Mark pleaded innocent, and while he didn’t speak during the trial, his lawyers argued that Ruja had lied to him, just like she’d lied to everyone. Konstantin Ignatov was the star witness for the prosecution and, for three days, he stunned the court as he told the story of OneCoin. The jewellry, the spies, the flats stacked with cash, the properties, the parties. When the court played the recordings of Ruja shouting at Gilbert Armenta over the phone in September 2017, it was too much for Konstantin. He started to cry. And when he explained how Frank Schneider had made secret recordings of Gilbert and his wife, only to learn about the FBI investigations, there was an audible gasp in the room. One of the court employees present said later it was the most remarkable thing she’d heard in 20 years of watching trials.
It only took the jury four hours to find Mark Scott guilty of bank fraud and money laundering. As they read out the verdict, his wife, Lidia, let out a wail. Mark Scott, portly and tanned, remained sanguine. He leaned over the railings and hugged her before being led out. At the time of writing, Mark Scott still claims he is innocent and is appealing his conviction. In late 2021 Scott’s counsel applied for a re-trial based on the allegation that Konstantin Ignatov perjured himself during Mark Scott’s trial. It is not clear when Scott’s motion for a new trial will be decided.1
In October 2021, Mark Scott’s assistant, David Pike, who worked with him on the Fenero Funds, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud.
Next was Gilbert Armenta, who’d been arrested in September 2017 and agreed to cooperate. In January 2018 Armenta pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, three counts of conspiracy to commit money laundering, and conspiracy to commit extortion. Sentencing was scheduled for April 7, 2022.
Sebastian Greenwood, who is currently held at Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, is being charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit securities fraud, and securities fraud. His pre-trial hearing was scheduled for February 24, 2022. I have not been able to make contact with him or his lawyers.
On April 29, 2021, Frank Schneider, the former spy who was Ruja’s security adviser, was dramatically arrested by French special forces at the request of the FBI. Armed police surrounded his car on the school run and put a gun to his 13-year-old son’s head. “I thought we were about to be assassinated on the spot,” Frank said later.2 On January 19, 2022, a French court ruled Schneider should be extradited to the US. At the time of writing, he is appealing the decision.
Over in Germany, the Bielefeld prosecutors had their day in court too. In October 2020, Frank Ricketts was charged with providing unauthorized payment services for OneCoin. The trial started in September 2021. At the time of writing the case is ongoing. The same month the lawyer Martin Breidenbach was charged with money laundering, in connection with the purchase of Ruja Ignatova’s London penthouses. The trial started in September 2021. At the time of writing the case is also ongoing.
In October 2019 Konstantin Ignatov pleaded guilty, pursuant to a cooperation agreement with the government, to conspiracy to commit wire fraud, substantive wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to commit bank fraud. His sentencing control date was scheduled for May 12, 2022. Just like his sister, Konstantin’s whereabouts are unknown.
At the time of writing, OneCoin continues to be marketed and sold around the world.