Creator of NFT project Mutant Ape Planet arrested on charges of defrauding investors

Law enforcement agencies have arrested Aurelien Michel, the creator of the NFT Mutant Ape Planet project, on charges of fraud with collectible tokens in the amount of $ 2.9 million. As indicated on the website of the US Department of Justice, French citizen Aurelien Michel, who lives in the United Arab Emirates, was arrested at the airport John F Kennedy in New York. The DOJ alleges that in the sale of Mutant Ape Planet's non-fungible tokens, Michel made false claims about multiple rewards, giveaways, and staking of tokens, as well as exclusive benefits available to holders of these NFTs. Michel managed to raise funds in the amount of about $ 3 million. The prosecutor's office claims that after the sale of crypto assets, the founder of the project did not fulfill his obligations to investors. Moreover, he stole their assets through a liquidity withdrawal scheme (rug pull). Later, on social networks, Michel wrote that he never intended to organize a fraudulent scheme, but the project community “became too toxic.” “Michelle will no longer be able to blame the NFT community for his criminal behavior. His arrest means that he will answer for fraudulent activities,” said Thomas Fattorusso, Acting Special Agent for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Recall that last year, US law enforcement officers detained two people suspected of creating the fraudulent NFT project Frosties, who managed to raise $1.1 million from investors.. According to PrivacyHQ analysts, 90% of collectible token holders have experienced fraud.