The CFTC accused a pastor of promoting a crypto scheme to churchgoers promising guaranteed returns of nearly 35%.
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.
