Cryptocurrency Ponzi Scheme IcomTech's Senior Marketing Associate Sentenced to Nearly Six Years in Prison

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced Wednesday, Dec. 19, that Magdaleno Mendoza, a 56-year-old senior promoter of the cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme IcomTech, has been sentenced to 71 months in prison for his role in the large-scale fraud targeting investors across the U.S. U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton for the Southern District of New York said Mendoza played a key role in recruiting victims—especially within the Spanish-speaking blue-collar community. “As a senior IcomTech promoter, Mendoza helped target Spanish-speaking users with little to no investment experience, including fellow New Yorkers,” Clayton stated. “He and his co-conspirators exploited victims’ trust to siphon millions of dollars in hard-earned money from the blue-collar community.” Founded in mid-2018, IcomTech claimed to be a cryptocurrency mining and trading firm promising investors guaranteed profits on deposits. But according to the DOJ, the company never engaged in the promised trading or mining activities; instead, it used new investors’ funds to pay early participants and fund the promoters’ lavish lifestyles.