Roni Cohen-Pavon, a former chief revenue officer at the defunct crypto lending platform Celsius, has pleaded guilty to multiple criminal charges related to market manipulation and fraud. Cohen-Pavon has agreed to cooperate with the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York on further investigations into the Celsius Network.
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Crypto Fraud Charges Leveled Against Roni Cohen-Pavon
In July, the Department of Justice (DOJ) charged Cohen-Pavon and former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky with a yearslong scheme meant to deceive customers about the value of the CEL token. The charges involved conspiracy to manipulate the price of a security, manipulation of a security price and volume, wire fraud, and securities fraud.
A court filing from the 13th of September claimed that he had pleaded guilty. The fraud charges he pleaded guilty to include conspiracy to manipulate the price CEL token, manipulation of the price and volume of the token, securities fraud, and wire fraud.
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Cohen-Pavon will not be facing criminal tax violation charges for crypto fraud, however. Instead, he will make restitution in an amount to be specified by the court and forfeit any money, properties, or personal items derived from proceeds traceable to the commission of his crimes.
Cohen-Pavon was released on a $500,000 bond and has been granted permission to travel between New York and Israel as he awaits sentencing on December 11. Meanwhile, Celsius founder Alex Mashinsky, also accused of artificially inflating the CEL token’s value, maintained his innocence and pleaded not guilty.
