Fugitive Crypto Queen Ruja Ignatova Found Alive After Being Missing For Five Years

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A property listing in the heart of London has brought out a notorious cryptocurrency fugitive who ran a $4 billion (A$5.6 billion) Ponzi scheme.

Bulgarian-born German citizen Ruja Ignatova, 42, and a business partner called Sebastian Greenwood have fooled crypto enthusiasts by claiming that their crypto token, OneCoin, is a “Bitcoin killer”.

They started offering it to potential investors in 2014, promising a return between five and ten times, and called their investors “idiots” and “crazy”.

However, in October 2017, the scammer disappeared completely when authorities surrounded and she has not been seen since.

She is now on the FBI’s 10 Most Wanted Fugitives list and is the only woman currently blacklisted.

Police warned she had likely undergone plastic surgery to change her appearance, with little hope she would ever be caught.

But earlier this month Ms Ignatova reportedly came out of the woodwork to claim one of her properties.

A few days ago, a penthouse apartment in the London suburb of Kensington, England, went up for sale with an asking price of £12.5 (A$21m), which was later downgraded to £11m. pounds sterling (19 million Australian dollars).

It is understood that Ms Ignatova bought the property in the name of a company, but a new rule means that the beneficiary of said company must also be named in full.

As a result, lawyers representing Ms Ignatova filed a formal claim over the property, listing her as the “beneficial owner” of the flat in a filing with the UK’s financial regulator.

A change in the rules at Companies House – the UK equivalent of ASIC – forced Ms Ignatova into hiding as she had to be named in full rather than just her front company.

Previously, the property was owned by a company called Abbots House Penthouse Limited, based in Guernsey, a well-known tax haven with very little government oversight.

This meant Ms Ignatova was kept out of public records and cadastral deeds – until now.

High-profile property seller Knight Frank advertised the property but quickly pulled the listing after it emerged Ms Ignatova had links to it.

Investigative journalist Jamie Bartlett, host of The Missing Cryptoqueen podcast, in conjunction with the BBC, initially reported a tenuous connection between the fraudster and the penthouse.

Now that link has been confirmed. Mr Bartlett said it could be a breakthrough.

“The world’s most wanted woman is now officially listed as the ultimate beneficial owner of a London penthouse,” he told iNews.

“This suggests she is still alive, and there are documents somewhere that contain vital clues to her recent whereabouts.

“If nothing else, this should make it easier for authorities to freeze this asset – and perhaps even start returning money to victims.”

The US Department of Prosecutions charged Ms Ignatova with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to launder money, conspiracy to commit securities fraud and securities fraud movables.

The FBI launched its most wanted list in 1950 and of the 529 fugitives who got an honorable mention, she is one of only 11 women.

They are desperate to catch the scammer, offering a US$100,000 reward for information that will ultimately lead to his arrest.

The crypto queen may have traveled with a German passport from Athens, possibly to the United Arab Emirates, Germany, Russia, Eastern Europe or even Bulgaria, the FBI says .

The US attorney suing Ms Ignatova, Damian Williams, released a damning statement last month in which he said his crypto tokens were useless.

“In fact, OneCoins had no value,” he said, according to CNN.

“(His) lies were crafted for one purpose, to get ordinary people around the world to part with their hard-earned money.”

“She left with a huge amount of money,” added FBI spokesman Michael Driscoll.

“Money can buy a lot of friends, and I imagine she benefits from that.”

Ms. Ignatova’s associates were not so lucky.

OneCoin’s other co-founder, Sebastian Greenwood, also fled.

Unlike Mrs. Ignatova, however, he did not stay free for very long.

In July 2018, he was arrested in Koh Samui, Thailand, and extradited to the United States where he pleaded guilty to wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to launder money. silver. He will be sentenced in April and could face up to 20 years in prison.

Ms Ignatova’s brother, Konstantin Ignatova, took over the operation after she fled.

He was arrested in March 2019 at Los Angeles airport as he was about to board a flight to Bulgaria.

He has since pleaded guilty to charges of wire fraud conspiracy, money laundering and fraud, and is due to be sentenced next month.

OneCoin is no longer operational, with the token unusable and the website inactive.

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