BitConnect Scam Founder John Bigatton Pleads Guilty in Australia, Sentencing Set for July 5

PANews reported on May 20 that John Bigatton, the founder of the cryptocurrency scam BitConnect involving over $2 billion, has admitted to criminal charges in Australia, according to Protos. The investigation by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) was assisted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The FBI is also involved in the investigation of BitConnect founder Satish Kumbhani, who has been indicted in the Southern District of California. Bigatton is scheduled to be sentenced on July 5 this year.

BitConnect was a Ponzi scheme disguised as a lending platform, offering unsustainable returns through its token BCC. Users could lend tokens to the platform with the promise that the funds would be used for profit. However, the rewards were not real, and the scheme eventually collapsed, leaving investors unable to access their funds. BitConnect announced the closure of its cryptocurrency trading and lending operations on January 16, 2018. Additionally, it was reported that Bigatton's wife, Madeline, went missing following the collapse of the Ponzi scheme, and some of her family members fear she was murdered.