According to a report in the news agency, a 50-year-old Indian-origin tech entrepreneur has been arrested in the US for an alleged investment scheme that defrauded more than 10,000 victims of over $45 million and was given several luxury cars and real estate agents. The net of the estate was laid.
Neil Chandran, of Las Vegas in Nevada, was arrested Wednesday in Los Angeles, the Justice Department said.
According to the indictment, Chandran was the owner of a group of technology companies, which he used to defraud investors by falsely promising exorbitantly high returns on the grounds that one or more of his companies were operating under the banner of “VIRSE”. Was being Can be acquired by a consortium of wealthy buyers.
Chandran’s companies – FreeVi Lab, Studio Vi Inc., WeDelivery Inc., WeMarket Inc., and Sklex USA Inc. – have developed virtual-world technology, including their own cryptocurrency, for use in the companies’ own metaverse.
The indictment alleges that Chandran induced other individuals to make various materially false and misleading representations to investors in which investors in his companies would soon receive exorbitantly high returns when one or more of those companies became wealthy. Bought by a group of buyers.
In fact, as per the indictment, there was no buyer group that was supposed to buy the companies for the claimed returns; A substantial portion of the money was misappropriated for other business ventures and personal gain of Chandran and others, including the purchase of luxury cars and real estate; And no major billionaires were involved in buying Chandran’s companies.
Allegations against Chandrani
Chandran has been charged with three counts of wire fraud and two counts of engaging in monetary transactions in criminally derived assets.
If convicted, Chandran faces up to 20 years in prison for each wire fraud and up to 10 years in prison for each count of engaging in unlawful monetary transactions.
The indictment also alleges that 100 different assets — bank accounts, real estate, and luxury vehicles, including 39 Tesla vehicles — are subject to seizure as fraudulent proceeds.
US Marshals and the FBI are confiscating most of the assets pending the resolution of the criminal case.