"Krypto Queen" - Who Is The Most Wanted Woman In The World
The woman on the FBI's "most wanted" list is a mysterious "Krypto Queen". Authorities are offering a huge reward to those who help them find her.
Known as the "Missing Cryptocurrency Queen", Ruja Ignatova joins the FBI's list of the world's 10 most wanted, reports the BBC. The Bulgarian-born woman is accused of creating a pyramid scheme to defraud victims who invested in the OneCoin cryptocurrency of more than $4bn.
In the so-called OneCoin cryptocurrency business, which began in 2014, customers were offered commissions if they managed to sell the currency to others.
Ruja Ignatova went missing in 2017 when US officials issued a warrant for her arrest and investigators were close to catching her.
The "Krypto Queen" - The Most Wanted Woman In The World
According to FBI agents, the OneCoin cryptocurrency had no value and was not secured by the blockchain technology used by other cryptocurrencies.
Damian Williams, Manhattan's chief prosecutor, explained that Ruja Ignatova set up her scheme perfectly, taking advantage of the wild speculation in the early days of cryptocurrencies.
A notice published on June 30 by the FBI offers a $100,000 reward for any information that could lead to Ruja Ignatova's arrest.
She was charged in 2019 with wire fraud and securities fraud, among other charges, for running the Bulgaria-based OneCoin Ltd as a pyramid scheme.
The woman disappeared with at least 500 million dollars, which helped her hide from the police.
Ruja Ignatova has not been seen since she boarded a plane from Bulgaria to Greece in 2017. She is also on Europol's list of Europe's most wanted.
With half a billion dollars at her disposal, it may prove extremely hard for investigators to find out where she is.
