CFTC accuses pastor of shilling $6M crypto Ponzi to congregants

[zasad@]

https://cointelegraph.com/news/cftc-alleges-pastor-6m-crypto-ponzi-promoted-churchgoers
"The United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission sued a pastor, accusing him of promoting a $6 million crypto Ponzi scheme to 1,500 people, including some who attended his church in Washington state.

The CFTC said on Dec. 10 that it filed a complaint against Francier Obando Pinillo for fraud and misappropriation as part of what it claimed was a multilevel marketing scheme.

In a Dec. 9 complaint to a Spokane federal court, the CFTC alleged that Pinillo, a pastor at a Spanish church in Pasco, Washington, claimed to his congregants and others through social media that he operated a trading platform that rewarded users through “high-performance” crypto trading. "

[Davidvictorson]

This is not a pastor but a businessman in the guise of a pastor. He represents the biblical wolf in sheeps clothing. he should be dealt with accordingly and if there was a way to strip him of ever standing in front of a congregation that should be part of his punishment. I know that most religious people are very gullible still, someone in the congregation who is knowledgeable about these ponzi schemes should enlightenment his fellows on crypto and get rich quick schemes. Also if people need jobs the church should be able to provide jobs for them so that they don't fall into these types of scams perpetrated by their any other religious leader.

[Fiatless]

https://cointelegraph.com/news/cftc-alleges-pastor-6m-crypto-ponzi-promoted-churchgoers
"The United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission sued a pastor, accusing him of promoting a $6 million crypto Ponzi scheme to 1,500 people, including some who attended his church in Washington state.

The CFTC said on Dec. 10 that it filed a complaint against Francier Obando Pinillo for fraud and misappropriation as part of what it claimed was a multilevel marketing scheme.

In a Dec. 9 complaint to a Spokane federal court, the CFTC alleged that Pinillo, a pastor at a Spanish church in Pasco, Washington, claimed to his congregants and others through social media that he operated a trading platform that rewarded users through “high-performance” crypto trading. "

Francier Obando Pinillo abused his position of trust as a pastor and used his influence to defraud them. It is common for religious leaders to use their authority to control the behavior of followers. The church members are also greedy and ignorant. How do you expect a monthly returns of up to 34.9% and a referral bonus of 15% on an investment? They also failed to do their homework. A simple research would have made them discover that it is a scam project. It is also a lesson to religious faithfuls that they shouldn't trust anybody even those who claim to be religious.

[Z-tight]

That is a crazy one, could it be possible that this man set up this congregation just to scam members of his church, if that is the case then we are talking about a scammer who had planned everything in advance and it makes the story more interesting. He has been running this ponzi since 2021 according to the article, which is a very long time, but when you promise people the kind of returns he did, they become very gullible to the hope of making money.

[zasad@]

The news about the pastor carries a bit of humour.
But the CFTC will soon have a new Chair

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-12-12/andreessen-crypto-policy-lead-quintenz-in-running-for-cftc-chair
Andreessen Crypto Policy Lead Quintenz in Running for CFTC Chair
Quintenz interviewed for derivatives regulator job recently
Agency expected to undergo more favorable crypto policy shift

"Brian Quintenz has emerged as a top contender to lead the Commodity Futures Trading Commission on what could be a dramatic shift in crypto regulation under President-elect Donald Trump.

Quintenz, a former Republican CFTC commissioner, has been interviewed for the position, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked to speak on background about private discussions.

He currently leads policy at a16z Crypto, the digital asset arm of venture capital heavyweight Andreessen Horowitz. Quintenz as well as a spokesman for a16z declined to comment. A spokesperson for the Trump transition didn’t respond to a request for comment on Wednesday."

[zasad@]

Attorney General James Secures Nearly $6 Million From Crypto Scammers Who Targeted Haitian Communities
https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2026/attorney-general-james-secures-nearly-6-million-crypto-scammers-who-targeted
"More Than 11,000 New Yorkers Lost Millions to Scammers Who Took Advantage of Immigrant Communities in Prayer Groups and on Social Media
AG James Asks Court to Order Scheme’s Ringleaders to Pay an Additional $1.3 Billion
NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James secured nearly $6 million from the leaders of an insidious cryptocurrency pyramid scheme that targeted Haitian and other communities, defrauding hundreds of thousands of investors worldwide, including more than 11,000 New Yorkers. In June 2024, Attorney General James sued cryptocurrency trading company NovaTechFx (NovaTech) and cryptocurrency mining company AWS Mining Pty Ltd. (AWS Mining) for targeting immigrant communities, particularly Haitian New Yorkers, in prayer groups and through social media and WhatsApp group chats with fraudulent promises of high returns on investments, while running illegal pyramid schemes. As a result of Attorney General James’ lawsuit, four of the scheme’s top promoters – Martin Zizi, Frantz Ciceron, Ricardo Roy, Sr., and James Corbett – will pay millions in disgorgement for the benefit of victims, and have been permanently banned from participating in the securities, commodities, and cryptocurrency industries. Today, Attorney General James is also asking the court to order NovaTech’s founders, Cynthia and Eddy Petion, to pay $1.3 billion in damages and disgorgement, following a default judgment issued in August 2025 after the couple fled the country."

[2stout]

Welp, another pimp in the pulpit selling the hope of God and then using that as a front and segue into Ponzi under the guise of "crypto investing".  Religion is the opiate of the masses and most people are like sheep- followers.  Throw in that you are to do what you are told and not question the "man of God" and you now have a "theocratarian" rule, similar to authoritarian rule.

Attorney General James is securing verdicts but I wonder how much money will actually be recovered and returned.

[Z-tight]

AWS Mining and its promoters, including the Petions, promised investors 15 to 20 percent monthly returns, 200 percent returns on investments within 15 months, and bonuses for recruiting new investors.

I have seen worse too-good-to-be-true offers than this, but there is still more than enough here to tip people off that this was simply a ponzi scheme and not a legitimate investment opportunity. 200% guaranteed returns within a year and 3 months, lol, it is very funny, but when you see that thousands of people fell for this, then you begin to question how a lot of people think.

As soon as you read 'bonus for recruiting new investors', you ought to know that it is a pyramid scheme, but greed!

[Fiatless]

AWS Mining and its promoters, including the Petions, promised investors 15 to 20 percent monthly returns, 200 percent returns on investments within 15 months, and bonuses for recruiting new investors.

I have seen worse too-good-to-be-true offers than this, but there is still more than enough here to tip people off that this was simply a ponzi scheme and not a legitimate investment opportunity. 200% guaranteed returns within a year and 3 months, lol, it is very funny, but when you see that thousands of people fell for this, then you begin to question how a lot of people think.

As soon as you read 'bonus for recruiting new investors', you ought to know that it is a pyramid scheme, but greed!

People seem to lose their sense of reason when it comes to religion. They tend to accept whatever religious leaders tell them without verifying whether it is possible or not. Which business on earth will guarantee a 200% profit in three months? Maybe illegal drugs or arms trade. I feel sorry for the victims because religion was used to take advantage of them. They still have to be blamed because they allowed greed to make them lose their sense of reasoning.

It's good that the court has ordered the top promoters of the fraudulent scheme to pay some amount. Maybe some of the victims would get part of what they have lost.

[zasad@]

AWS Mining and its promoters, including the Petions, promised investors 15 to 20 percent monthly returns, 200 percent returns on investments within 15 months, and bonuses for recruiting new investors.

I have seen worse too-good-to-be-true offers than this, but there is still more than enough here to tip people off that this was simply a ponzi scheme and not a legitimate investment opportunity. 200% guaranteed returns within a year and 3 months, lol, it is very funny, but when you see that thousands of people fell for this, then you begin to question how a lot of people think.

As soon as you read 'bonus for recruiting new investors', you ought to know that it is a pyramid scheme, but greed!

People seem to lose their sense of reason when it comes to religion. They tend to accept whatever religious leaders tell them without verifying whether it is possible or not. Which business on earth will guarantee a 200% profit in three months? Maybe illegal drugs or arms trade. I feel sorry for the victims because religion was used to take advantage of them. They still have to be blamed because they allowed greed to make them lose their sense of reasoning.

It's good that the court has ordered the top promoters of the fraudulent scheme to pay some amount. Maybe some of the victims would get part of what they have lost.

I don’t think religion is the issue here; most religions teach the value of hard work and honest earnings, and they forbid questionable investments. What I see here is simple human greed—the desire to get rich in a very short amount of time.
On this forum, members have often pointed out that a fool will lose his money, and that for every fool, there’s a swindler to be found.

[Fiatless]

I don’t think religion is the issue here; most religions teach the value of hard work and honest earnings, and they forbid questionable investments. What I see here is simple human greed—the desire to get rich in a very short amount of time.
On this forum, members have often pointed out that a fool will lose his money, and that for every fool, there’s a swindler to be found.

I brought up the issue of religion because these scammers targeted victims in prayer groups. Now it is essential to note that religious people will believe an investment that was introduced in a religious group more than they would believe one introduced by other organizations. It is assumed that "righteous" people would cheat or scam others. They tend to believe what is said on these religious platforms because everyone is expected to behave in a dignified manner.

They targeted minority and religious communities, particularly Haitian communities, in prayer groups and WhatsApp group chats with advertisements in Haitian Creole and religious messages that appealed to their faith.

The problem here is not religion, but those who misuse it. Some religion believe is miracles and divine blessing. These scammers promote these Ponzi schemes as a blessing from God. I have seen this play out in many churches in my country.