Siblings face fraud charges for by alleged ‘Ormeus Coin’ crypto scheme

John and Tina Barksdale were charged Tuesday for alleged securities fraud, wire fraud and conspiracies to commit both by selling a cryptocurrency called “Ormeus Coin.” 

According to a release from the Department of Justice, John Barksdale misrepresented that Ormeus Coin secured a $250 million mining operation and accrued more than $5 million in revenue each month, despite the coin never approaching such value. 

“As alleged, John Barksdale perpetrated a scheme to sell the cryptocurrency Ormeus Coin to investors around the world through a web of lies, which he spread through in-person roadshows, social media and even a jumbotron in Times Square,” U.S. attorney Damian Williams said in a press release. 

The alleged crimes occurred starting in June 2017, with Ormeus Coin reaching its peak market capitalization of $52 million at around January 2018. The Barksdales allegedly defrauded investors for more than $124 million through Ormeus Coin, a release from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) states. 

The Barksdales face up to a maximum sentence of 20 years for each charge of securities fraud, wire fraud, with a maximum of five years for conspiracy to commit securities fraud.