The Spanish government has detained Roger Ver, better known as “Bitcoin Jesus” and Bitcoin Cash’s creator, on suspicion of mail fraud, tax evasion, and filing false tax returns. Ver could be extradited to the United States to face trial.
Ver is accused of participating in fraudulent activities pertaining to his companies and personal Bitcoin (BTC) holdings in an indictment that was unsealed yesterday, according to the US Department of Justice (DOJ).
MemoryDealers.com Inc. and Agilestar.com Inc. were both owned by Ver, and his alleged wrongdoing began in 2011, according to the indictment. The allegations against Ver center on his alleged failure to declare and pay the necessary exit tax on his large Bitcoin assets following his 2014 renunciation of US citizenship. According to reports, Ver and his companies possessed 131,000 BTC by 2014, with a value of around $871 per coin at that time.
The indictment goes on to say that Ver lied to a law firm and an appraiser, which caused his businesses to be undervalued and his personal Bitcoin ownership to be left out of his tax returns. Allegedly, Ver did not report or pay taxes on gains of about $240 million from the sale of 70,000 bitcoins in 2017. As a result of Ver’s activities, the IRS asserts a loss of $48 million.
United States Attorney Martin Estrada and Justice Department Tax Division official Stuart M. Goldberg made the announcement; the investigation was led by the IRS Criminal Investigation’s cybercrimes unit. Trial Attorney Peter J. Anthony, Assistant U.S. Attorney James C. Hughes, and Assistant Chief Matthew J. Kluge are prosecuting the case.