Roger Ver indicted by US Justice Department for tax fraud

The United States Department of Justice has announced charges against Roger Ver, an early investor in Bitcoin known as “Bitcoin Jesus.” Ver was arrested in Spain on April 30 based on criminal charges in the U.S., including mail fraud, tax evasion, and filing false tax returns. The U.S. government alleges that Ver defrauded the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) of approximately $48 million by not reporting capital gains from the sale of Bitcoin and other assets.
According to the indictment, which was filed on February 15 and unsealed on April 29, Ver gained control of around 70,000 BTC in June 2017 and sold a significant portion of them for $240 million. U.S. officials plan to extradite Ver from Spain to the United States for trial.
The reactions to Ver’s arrest on social media were mixed. However, Bitcoin advocate Dan Held, former growth lead at Kraken, expressed that Ver “deserves everything that he’s about to get” because he “nearly destroyed Bitcoin.” Held also accused Ver of attacking his livelihood and reputation, stating that Ver’s actions led to a civil war within the Bitcoin community.
Ver was also known for his support of Bitcoin Cash (BCH). In 2022, he was involved in a scandal with crypto investment platform CoinFlex, which claimed that Ver owed them $47 million in USD Coin (USDC). At the time of publication, Ver had not made any comments on social media regarding the charges brought by the Justice Department.