BlockBeats news, on August 27, according to Decrypt, U.S. federal prosecutors filed an appeal with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, seeking to increase the 'time served' sentence for Estonian citizens Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turõgin in the $577 million HashFlare cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme case, which the federal prosecutors described as 'abnormally lenient.'
The two previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges, defrauding 440,000 victims worldwide through false mining contracts from 2015 to 2019, showcasing fictional returns on 'fake dashboards' and using the funds for luxury goods and paying early withdrawers. A judge previously sentenced the two to only three years of supervised release and a fine of $25,000 each, rejecting the prosecutors' request for 10 years in prison, citing concerns about the treatment of foreign defendants in the U.S., including the possibility of 'indefinite detention.' Legal experts stated that the judge had sufficient reasons based on 'time served, immigration risks, and compensation issues'; the Ninth Circuit generally respects the discretion of district judges, making it likely that the ruling will be upheld, but lenient sentences may undermine the deterrent effect of economic crimes. The case has seized $400 million for victim compensation and is referred to as the 'largest fraud case' in the Western District of Washington.
