(NewsNation) — A Colorado pastor is accused of defrauding investors of more than $3 million by marketing a “practically worthless” cryptocurrency to Christian communities and claiming God told him investors would become wealthy.
Colorado Security Commissioner Tung Chan filed civil fraud charges against Eli and Kaitlyn Regalado, INDXcoin, LLC, Kingdom Wealth Exchange and others.
Eli Regalado is accused of marketing and selling the cryptocurrency INDXcoin, which was available through the Kingdom Wealth Exchange — an online exchange the Regalados created and operated, according to a news release.
Investigators allege that from June 2022 to April 2023, INDXcoin raised nearly $3.2 million from more than 300 people, according to the civil complaint. The pastor and his wife allegedly marketed the cryptocurrency as a “low-risk, high-profit investment.”
A third-party auditor’s report, however, described the INDXcoin code as “unsafe, unsecure and riddled with serious technical problems,” the Colorado securities commissioner’s news release stated.
The couple is accused of using investments into the “illiquid and practically worthless” cryptocurrency to support their “lavish” lifestyle, according to the release.
“We allege that Mr. Regalado took advantage of the trust and faith of his own Christian community and that he peddled outlandish promises of wealth to them when he sold them essentially worthless cryptocurrencies,” Colorado Securities Commissioner Tung Chan said in an official statement. “New coins and new exchanges are easy to create with open source code. We want to remind consumers to be very skeptical.”
The action, filed in Denver District Court, seeks preliminary and injunctive relief, damages for investors and for a constructive trust to be placed on the defendants’ property.
