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Angry Mob Burns Down Home of Suspected Bitcoin Swindler

posted by martyb on Thursday July 18 2019, @12:08AM   Printer-friendly
from the follow-the-money dept.

upstart writes in with a submission, via IRC, for AnonymousLuser.

Angry mob burns down home of suspected Bitcoin swindler:

A man thought to have been behind an alleged Bitcoin Ponzi scheme has had his house looted and burned to the ground in South Africa, reports Times Live. Sphelele "Sgumza" Mbatha was reportedly the operator of "Bitcoin Wallets," a scheme which promised investors a 100 percent return on their investment after 15 days.

The arson came a week after Mbatha admitted to the Ladysmith Gazettethat he didn't have any more cash to pay out, and said that investors would need to submit their details online to receive their payouts. He also claimed to not be the owner of the company, despite having registered the business "Bitcoin Wallets Achievers" the previous week. The following week he then said that hackers had infiltrated the website and had stolen investor's money, according to Times Live.

Mbatha's whereabouts are currently unknown

The arson came after angry crowds had previously gathered outside Bitcoin Wallets' headquarters as well as the local police station. Mbatha was reportedly offered assistance by the authorities to relocate the company on the condition that he provided a business plan to prove it was legitimate. However, the documents had not been produced as of last week. A spokesperson from South Africa's National Credit Regulator had previously raised doubts about the company's official documentation.

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  • (Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Thursday July 18 2019, @06:43PM (1 child)

    by Runaway1956 (2926) Subscriber Badge on Thursday July 18 2019, @06:43PM (#868616) Journal

    I demanded nothing of you. I wanted your honest answer condemning leftist violence, just as you're ready to condemn non-leftist violence. Like many others, you're willing to excuse violence from people you approve of, and unwilling to excuse violence from people you disapprove of.

    I disapprove of people who exploit and defraud other people - and that includes a large portion of the infamous 1%.

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  • (Score: 2) by DeathMonkey on Thursday July 18 2019, @07:00PM

    by DeathMonkey (1380) on Thursday July 18 2019, @07:00PM (#868630) Journal

    Like many others, you're willing to excuse violence from people you approve of, and unwilling to excuse violence from people you disapprove of.

    You're projecting again. That's what YOU just did in the above post.

    I have never excused violence. I WILL point out false equivalency when you post it, though.