Las Vegas entrepreneur convicted in $24M cryptocurrency fraud scheme could face 280 years
Brent Kovar, a Las Vegas-based business owner, has been found guilty of orchestrating a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme worth $24 million that victimized more than 400 investors.
An entrepreneur based in Las Vegas is staring down a potential maximum prison sentence of 280 years following his conviction by a federal jury for orchestrating a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme valued at $24 million that victimized no fewer than 400 investors.
According to an announcement made Monday by the US Justice Department, Brent Kovar was determined to be guilty on 11 wire fraud counts, two mail fraud counts and two money laundering counts after a trial that lasted nine days.
Between late 2017 and July 2021, Kovar operated a company called Profit Connect. The business allegedly utilized artificial intelligence software running on a supercomputer for the purpose of mining cryptocurrency and validating other cryptocurrency transactions.
Kovar misrepresented the company's financial status as profitable and made promises of guaranteed fixed annual returns between 15% and 30%, in addition to offering a full money-back guarantee. He further asserted that Profit Connect maintained cryptocurrency reserves worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
According to prosecutors, the company generated no profits and possessed no such reserves whatsoever. The business also lacked any legitimate methods to fulfill the returns it promised or honor the money-back guarantee.
Rather than operating a legitimate business, Kovar diverted investor funds to sustain Profit Connect's operations, purchase gifts for his employees, acquire a residential property for his personal use and compensate earlier investors while disguising these payments as profits generated from cryptocurrency activities.
Kovar's sentencing hearing has been set for Nov. 30. The 280-year maximum penalty represents the total of all statutory maximums for the charges, though the actual sentence will be determined by a federal judge.