Igbara perpetrated multiple fraud schemes and defrauded investors of at least $8 million.
Jebara Igbara, also known as “Jay Mazini”, who claimed to be a Crypto on Instagram, was sentenced by US District Judge Frederic Block to seven years in prison on wire fraud and money laundering charges. The ruling also requires Igbara to forfeit $10 million.
Jay Mazini Labeled “Crypto Fraudster”
Igbara, 28, carried out multiple fraud schemes and defrauded investors of at least $8 million, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said Wednesday. He pleaded guilty to the charges in November 2022.
U.S. Attorney Breon Peace stated that Igbara’s prosecution revealed him as a fraudster who used his popularity on social media to swindle investors out of millions of dollars. Peace added that Igbara targeted his religious community, exploiting their trust to spend and gamble their hard-earned money. The hope is that today’s ruling will deter fraudsters like Igbara from victimizing investors for personal gain, he added.
Through a company called Halal-Capital LLC, Igbara ran a Ponzi scheme targeting Muslims, prosecutors said. He posted on his Instagram account and other social media offering above-market prices for cryptocurrencies and sent doctored images of bank transfer arrangements that suggested he had sent the money. Actually this was not the case.
Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge Thomas Fattorusso characterized Igbara as a “crypto scammer” who created a fake online presence to convince unsuspecting victims to invest in his schemes.
Fattorusso noted that Igbara defrauded New York’s Muslim community out of millions and subsequently spent and gambled the funds. He highlighted that Igbara’s actions ignored the victims of his scam, but the sentence ensures that he will spend years in prison for his criminal acts.
Igbara Orchestrated Overlapping Fraud Schemes
From 2019 to 2021, Igbara maintained a prominent presence on Instagram as “Jay Mazini”, gaining almost one million followers. He presented himself as a prosperous investor and businessman while sharing content related to his Muslim faith, presenting himself as devout.
Igbara showed off his alleged wealth by sharing videos on Instagram in which he distributed large sums of cash to shoppers in supermarket checkout lines, employees at a fast food restaurant and a woman he met at the airport. and that she had lost her bag.
Igbara executed an investment fraud scheme targeting members of the Muslim-American community in New York. He requested funds from them for alleged investments in stocks, resale of electronic products and sale of personal protective equipment. In reality, Igbara was orchestrating a Ponzi scheme, diverting almost all funds for personal expenses, luxury vehicles and gambling.
Igbara then initiated a second fraudulent scheme to maintain the illusion of profitability and retain investors. He announced on his Instagram and other social media platforms that he would pay above-market prices for various cryptocurrencies.
After receiving cryptocurrency from victims, Igbara fabricated bank transfer confirmations, falsely stating that he had sent money for the cryptocurrency as promised. In reality, no payment was made and Igbara simply pocketed the cryptocurrency sent by his victims.
“Igbara was a Crypto scammer. Not only did he create a fake online presence to pretend he was a wealthy Crypto investor, but he used his Instagram persona as proof of success in convincing his unsuspecting victims to invest in his schemes,” pointed out Special Agent in Charge of Investigation Internal Revenue Service Criminal Thomas Fattorusso in the statement.
By Audy Castaneda
