Le Minh Tam, the CEO of cryptocurrency mining company Sky Mining, has fled Vietnam with $35 million in stolen assets.
There are a lot of exciting features of the cryptocurrency sphere, but the Wild West nature of the ecosystem does have some drawbacks. The number of fraudulent ICOs and other scams going on can definitely put a dampener on the happiness of a crypto enthusiast. A new crime is putting the bite on quite a few investors in Vietnam as the CEO of a cryptocurrency mining company has apparently absconded, taking with him about $35 million in assets.
Mining CEO Disappears
Sky Mining is a cryptocurrency mining company based in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The company sold mining rigs that investors paid between $100 to $5,000 for, which the company would use at their various locations to mine cryptocurrency. The investors were promised a full return of their investment after a year, not to mention a profit of up to 300 percent.
The CEO of the company, Le Minh Tam, went missing last Monday. He eventually posted a message on Facebook a few days later, saying that profitability had fallen greatly, as well as apologizing for “everything.” He also said that he was hiding from public view in order to protect his life. He told investors that he would eventually declare bankruptcy for the company and that they should go to the company headquarters to get their investment back.
However, the investors found an empty office. To add insult to injury, 600 mining rigs located in the company’s factory in nearby Bien Hoa Town had been removed by a group of men who said they were maintenance workers.
All in all, it appears that Le Minh Tam fled Vietnam for the United States, taking $35 million in assets with him. It should be noted that the United States does not have an extradition treaty with Vietnam.
Lots of Trouble Recently
Le Minh Hieu, the deputy chairman of the company, said he has created a temporary board of 16 members. The board is to find out what assets are remaining and how best to help investors. That’s easier said than done as Tam directly oversaw all the operations and storage.
This isn’t the first case where cryptocurrency mining has run into legal mischief. Last month, Chinese law enforcement arrested a man who conned investors out of $15 million after he defaulted on over 3,000 orders for mining rigs. A few weeks before that, a Chinese crypto miner was arrested for stealing 150,000 kW hours of electricity to power his operation.
Just last week, investors in Hong Kong filed criminal complaints against a company that sold them mining rigs. The promised financial rewards never materialized. Investors were promised to make up to almost $300 a day, but they wound up making only a few dollars instead.
As for Vietnam, now is not a good time for cryptocurrency within the country. The government’s State Securities Commission has essentially banned almost all cryptocurrency-related activities, putting a stranglehold on the entire industry.
Do you think law enforcement will eventually track down CEO Le Minh Tam? Let us know in the comments below.
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