Missouri man sentenced to 3 years in prison for crypto and tax fraud
Lyell Champagne Jr., a Missouri resident, has been sentenced to three years in federal prison for his involvement in cryptocurrency and tax fraud.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut announced the sentencing, which came after an investigation led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Champagne's crimes involved a scheme to steal money from victims' bank accounts and file fraudulent tax returns.
Based on court documents, between March 2021 and April 2022, Champagne, along with his co-conspirator Kristian Gupta, attempted to steal funds by illegally obtaining online banking credentials from unsuspecting victims.
Using these credentials, they transferred the stolen money into cryptocurrency accounts that they controlled.
Additionally, the pair tried to recruit bank insiders to assist with their fraudulent activities.
However, their efforts were thwarted by an undercover investigation, preventing the full execution of their scheme.
"As part of the scheme, Gupta provided Champagne with personal identifying information of victims, and Champagne used that information to open email accounts and accounts at a cryptocurrency exchange," court documents detailed.
This operation was designed to funnel the stolen funds through various accounts to obscure their origins.
Alongside the fraud involving bank accounts, Champagne also submitted false tax returns for a fictitious company named “Shireberk International” from 2018 to 2021.
These fake tax filings resulted in a refund of $3,449,935.
However, law enforcement successfully recovered the majority of these stolen funds.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) confirmed, "The remaining funds were recovered by law enforcement," highlighting the effectiveness of the investigation.
Champagne pleaded guilty on June 11, 2024, to charges of bank fraud conspiracy and filing false claims.
His co-conspirator, Gupta, who had also pleaded guilty to his role in the scheme in April, is awaiting his sentencing, scheduled for September 19, 2024.
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