A father joined his son this month in being arrested for a massive crypto scam that saw them combine to swindle more than $10 million from investors—using the money to fund a lavish lifestyle filled with posh hotels, fine dining and luxury cars, federal authorities announced Wednesday.
Brandon Austin, who was arrested in April, and his dad Eugene “Hugh” Austin Jr., arrested July 5, are accused of soliciting massive cryptocurrency investments they never intended to pay back in full. Now, the two men face up 20 years behind bars on money laundering and wire fraud charges.
Brandon, 27, has already pleaded guilty for his part in the scheme, agreeing to pay $2 million in restitution and to forfeit $3.4 million—plus a 2022 E-Pace P250 Jaguar to authorities.
It remains unclear if Hugh, 60, will follow his son’s lead and plead guilty. Brandon is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 6.
An unsealed complaint for Hugh, filed by the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, has shed light on the lavish life he and Brandon indulged in between 2018 and 2021 while their investors—a group of 20 wealthy patrons in Asia and the United States—seemingly agonized over their missing money.
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The feds claim the duo made nominal payments to their investors to keep them at bay, assuring them their investment was safe and growing. In reality, the feds claim they were using the money to purchase cryptocurrency for themselves, quickly flipping the digital assets into cash they then quietly deposited into their own bank accounts.
With that money, prosecutors say the duo booked plane tickets and stays at luxury hotels. The leftover cash was spent on everyday expenses like gas, Amazon purchases, child support payments, and phone bills, the complaint said.
The feds claim the duo also gifted money to loved ones through wire transfers. Among the money moved was $10,000 each to Hugh’s daughter and girlfriend, while Brandon sent $32,000 to his girlfriend and $50,000 to the mother of his kids.
The complaint also revealed Austin purchased designer clothing for his family and bought his partner, who was not named, the Jaguar SUV that was later forfeited to authorities. Authorities said it was valued at $62,000.
While Brandon and Austin allegedly trotted around the globe on their investors’ dime, a series of texts included in the complaint showed the stress felt by investors as their money seemingly vanished.
“We can not accept the promise of ‘its coming’ when since last Wednesday night and each day since I was told I would have coins the next day,” an unnamed investor, who paid $529,750 for bitcoin but is said to have received none, wrote to Hugh. “Put yourself in my shoes.”
Hugh allegedly responded plainly: “I w call u (sic) in about 25 minutes. Thanks Hugh.”
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Brandon and Austin’s scheme to fool investors sometimes included inviting them on lavish trips to Miami, New York and Europe, the feds said.
Despite this, the feds say the duo stole from the very people they were doting on. That included a $100,000 investment from an unnamed man which the pair immediately took $36,000 of and deposited it into Brandon’s personal accounts. The investor allegedly never saw any of his money again—let alone the 50 percent return he was initially promised.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams wrote in a press release Wednesday that Brandon and Hugh “victimized both sophisticated and novice cryptocurrency investors alike out of millions.”
“They used the money from victims to fund a lavish lifestyle of travel, luxury hotels, and fancy restaurants,” Williams said. “Thanks to the tenacity of [Homeland Security Investigations] and the career prosecutors of this Office, Hugh Austin is now facing serious criminal charges for his alleged crimes, and Brandon Austin has already pled guilty.”
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