WOMAN FACES HARSH SENTENCE FOR RUNNING AN ILLEGAL BITCOIN TRANSMISSION AGENCY

The world of bitcoin trading is not all bliss as one woman in Los Angeles has realized after illegally trading in Bitcoin. She is facing a 30-year jail term for operating what has been regarded to as operating an illegal money transmitting business, a charge she pleaded guilty to. The woman who transacted under the name ‘Bitcoin Maven’ is believed to have made more than $300k from trading in Bitcoin between 2014 and 2017 on localbitcoins.com. She is also believed to have made transactions worth about $9.5 million within this period of time. She pleaded guilty for running an unregistered money transmission outfit. Her last transaction involved 80 bitcoins that were valued at $70,000 connected to drug trafficking raising serious red flags.

The court prosecution is pushing for a 30-year jail term while her lawyers are calling out for a year. The bitcoin community is crying foul but not making out much. Running an unregistered money transmission business in the U.S is a serious offense with dire consequences as has been seen in various cases. Randall and Michael Lord also found themselves on the wrong side of the law after trading without the legal papers leading to jail terms. Michael also pleaded guilty to being involved in narcotics distribution in court. Another man was jailed for 366 days for transacting $2.4 million illegally on localbitcoins.com.

The court was also keen to point out the dangers that are being caused by the uncontrolled world of cryptocurrency which seems to be hiding place for traffickers and money channeling. SEC has also set out to push the regulation of the currencies with a probe being set out but CFTC but also looking into the possibilities Blockchain could present. Regulations have been deemed as necessary with all traders required to register their money transmission outfits. Measures to ensure that proper registration is already in place for digital traders and these still apply even in the world of the unhindered cryptocurrency. Coin currencies such as Kraken have also been asked to submit their trading documents for scrutiny a move that has caused a recent dip in the world of cryptocurrencies.

The prosecutors in the woman’s case felt that the unregulated banking industry fueled black-market transactions as a breeding ground for criminals.

The case was a first in Southern California bringing a new light into what Bitcoin was capable of in the wrong hands.