MIAMI – Austin Michael Taylor, the founder of the cryptocurrency project CluCoin and owner of CLU LLC, an Aventura-based company, pleaded guilty to wire fraud in Miami federal court, authorities confirmed Wednesday.
The charges stem from a scheme in which authorities said Taylor, 40, transferred $1,140,000 in CluCoin investor funds to his personal account.
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Court records reveal that Taylor used his large social media following to generate interest in a digital token he named “CLU.”
According to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice, Taylor promoted CLU’s initial coin offering (ICO) at a fundraising event where investors exchange established cryptocurrencies or fiat currency for a new digital token.
While there, authorities said Taylor produced a white paper to attract investors, promoting the ICO’s charitable focus.
The CluCoin ICO launched successfully on May 19, 2021. However, Taylor later redirected CluCoin’s efforts toward new ventures, including non-fungible tokens (NFTs), a computer game, and a metaverse platform, according to investigators.
To boost interest in these projects, Taylor organized and funded “NFTCon: Into the Metaverse,” held in Miami on April 4 and 5, 2022.
Shortly after the event, in May 2022, detectives said Taylor gained the ability to withdraw funds from a cryptocurrency address linked to investor money.
Between May and December 2022, authorities said he transferred approximately $1.14 million in investor funds to his personal account at a virtual currency exchange and lost the money gambling at online casinos.
Court records show Taylor is scheduled for sentencing on Oct. 31 at 10 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Jacqueline Becerra.
The DOJ news release states that Taylor is facing up to 20 years in prison for the wire fraud conviction, with the final sentence to be determined by Becerra, who will consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other legal factors.