A former Guam resident who called himself a “self-made multimillionaire” has agreed to plead guilty to scamming more than 100 investors in a cryptocurrency case.
William Koo Ichioka, 30, a federal defendant in the Northern District of California, is a 2011 graduate of St. John’s School. His family members are the founders and current leaders of Guam City Hill, the parent company of the Guam Plaza Hotel and JP Superstore.
After graduating from the Upper Tumon school, Ichioka moved to California to attend the University of San Francisco. Following his graduation in 2015, he became a self-employed investor, who, by the age of 23, said he was a multimillionaire.
By 2018, Ichioka was living in New York and allegedly started a scheme in which he would fraudulently acquire “tens of millions of dollars from over 100 persons and entities,” with the promise he would give investors a 10% return every 30 business days.
According to court documents, Ichioka instead used the funds, meant for cryptocurrency investments, for his own personal expenses, such as rent and groceries, luxury watches, jewelry and vehicles.
In 2019, he started Ichioka Ventures, a business he said was designed to assist investors. It was used by Ichioka to “further perpetuate the scheme,” court documents state.
“For instance, Ichioka privately acknowledged at the end of 2019 – unbeknownst to investors – that the ‘company hasn’t made any money since we started.’ Ichioka never told investors this fact,” federal court records state.
In addition to hiding the lack of profits, Ichioka also allegedly doctored documents to falsify the amount of money he had and falsely represented his income to the Internal Revenue Service.
Ichioka owes at least $21 million to investors and owes $40 million to his family members, court documents state.
On June 22, a charging document listed Ichioka’s alleged criminal acts, but a plea agreement was filed the same day. The agreement remains under seal. Ichioka is set to make an appearance in court July 5.
In a news release issued by the Northern District of California District Attorney’s Office, Ichioka agreed to plead guilty to one count of wire fraud, one count of fraud in connection with purchase and sales of securities, one count of commodities fraud and two counts of aiding or assisting in the preparation of a false or fraudulent tax return.
Ichioka faces up to 71 years in federal prison, and could be ordered by the court to pay monetary penalties or restitution.
Credit: Source link