OmegaPro Founders Charged in Massive $650M Crypto Fraud Scheme

The Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged Michael Shannon Sims, the founder and promoter of OmegaPro, and Juan Carlos Reynoso, the platform’s operations manager, who led Latin America and parts of the United States, including Puerto Rico. 

According to the court documents, the 48 and 57-year-olds used the company to defraud investors of approximately $650 million. OmegaPro was an international investment scheme that promised investors safe returns if they invested with the firm.  

Sims and Reynoso Accused of Wire Fraud and Money Laundering

Notably, the charges against Sims and Reynoso include conspiring to commit wire fraud and conspiring to launder money. If the court convicts them, they both face the possibility of serving as much as 20 years behind bars for each offense. 

According to the allegations, Sims and his associates founded OmegaPro around January 2019. Reynoso became involved approximately three months later, in or around April 2019. The defendants and their co-conspirators are accused of marketing the platform as a multi-level marketing venture, offering so-called “investment packages” to prospective investors. 

Furthermore, the OmegaPro executives falsely promised the victims that they would generate 300% over the space of 16 months. These men revealed that the funds would come from foreign exchange trading (forex). While investors were promised elite traders, they were also instructed to purchase these investment packages with crypto.  

OmegaPro Claims Cyberattack Compromised Investor Funds

In addition, Sims, Reynoso, and their associates allegedly hosted high-profile promotional events and training seminars to promote the company, including projecting the company’s logo on Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, at an event in Dubai. 

Ultimately, prosecutors allege, the goal of these events was to make OmegaPro appear credible as an investment opportunity, one that could lead to significant wealth and a life of luxury. 

To attract more investors, these men used social media to display and showcase their luxury cars, vacations, designer clothes, and watches. Together, they raised roughly $650 million from thousands of investors. 

Unfortunately, in 2023, the platform announced that it had suffered a network hack. In response, the executives informed the victims that their investments were secure and that the company was transferring their funds to another platform called ‘Broker Group.’  

Even with new developments at the time, investors were unable to withdraw funds from OmegaPro’s account and their accounts at Broker Group, resulting in the loss of millions of dollars.