While incarcerated, Jarryd Hayne met one Seenar Sappideen, who convinced Hayne and several other cellmates to invest $2 million in bitcoins through him. Sappidin convinced them that he allegedly made $290 million for clients by working with Australian billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes at an investment firm.<br
Hayne had acquaintances outside of prison who had access to his bank accounts. They transferred the money to him.. Hayne is now trying to recover his funds, but their current whereabouts remain unknown. Sappidin is currently serving a 12-year prison sentence – he was convicted in 2018 of stealing $4.6 million from family and friends in a Ponzi scheme.
In March, it became known that two players from two Brazilian clubs fell for cryptocurrencies promising a return of 5% a month. The players were invited to participate in the pyramid by a colleague from another club.
In December, police in Italy and Albania exposed a fraudulent cryptocurrency scheme that raised 15 million euros (more than $15.9 million). The organizers of the scheme contacted investors from a call center in the Albanian capital of Tirana using virtual phone numbers and virtual private networks (VPNs).