The infamous Mt. The Gox-saga will finally end on March 15, 2019 in the Japanese courts. Mark Kerpelest, a 33-year-old owner of the stock exchange, is accused of “falsifying digital data and embezzling millions of dollars ($ 3 million)”; If found guilty, he will be severely punished and could serve a ten-year sentence. Here is a brief summary of the entire episode:
2014 Mt. Gox shutdown
In February 2014, Mt. Gox allegedly stopped withdrawals and trading on the stock exchange due to maintenance issues. However, on February 28, 2014, he filed for bankruptcy, claiming that the most significant exchange in the world at the time had been hacked with 850,000 Bitcoins.
The bitcoin market soon collapsed, and investors then lost about $ 425 million worth of Bitcoin. The case came to light in a Japanese court and Mark Karpeles, the stock exchange owner, could be held liable.
In March 2014, a public announcement on the website announced that 200,000 Bitcoins had been recovered from Mt.’s refrigerator. Gox Exchange. The funds were held in “trust” by the Japanese authorities for the purpose of credit insurance.
2015 Procedure: 650,000 Bitcoins Lost Forever?
After the discovery of 200,000 Bitcoins, the study came to a dead end due to a lack of compliance between KYC and ALM at the time.
Mark Karlepes was later arrested in August 2015 in Japan. Kerpeles is said to have manipulated the exchange data for years during the operation of the stock exchange, embezzling nearly $ 3 million. He served one year in prison until July 2016 before being released.
This is a very small amount compared to the value of 6.5 million bitcoins that are still missing on the stock exchange. Nevertheless, if found guilty, he is severely punished.
Satoshi Mihira, chief lawyer at Mizuho Chuo Law Firm, said: “If an external hacker stole the currency, that’s the problem. But if he stole some of the money, it would be embezzlement. “
How much have investors lost?
The lawsuit against Mark Karpeles may add some resources to the total loan amount, however, it is the illicit owner of 6.5 million Bitcoins from Mt. Gox is still free.
Nevertheless, not everything is lost for its investors. In June 2018, when the price of Bitcoin was $ 6,200, the Tokyo District Court launched a loan repayment program called civil rehabilitation. Approximately $ 1.2 billion worth of 170,000 Bitcoin and Hard Fork Bitcoin Cash (BCH) funds have been withdrawn from its former clients and debtors. The amount credited is still almost three times the amount allegedly lost during the theft.
“Huge assets… will be repaid to Mt.’s creditors by Gox,” Shin Fukuoka, a senior attorney and partner at Japan’s Nishimura & Asahi law firm, also wrote in a statement. “It’s a victory for creditors.”
The first creditors meeting since civil rehabilitation ended today the next will be on March 20, 2019. Keep in mind that the deadline for submitting civil rehabilitation claims is October 22, 2018, so if you have a claim against MtGox, don’t forget to file it on time!
– Mark Karpelès (@MagicalTux)
Prosecution claims against Kerpeles
Prosecutors against him served a ten-year sentence and repayment of their personal credit to creditors. According to the prosecutor, they have reports of Mark Karpeles ’extravagant spending and investments, which may suggest that the funds were unfounded.
They made a significant investment in a 3D printer software business that had nothing to do with the replacement. He also had a $ 54,000 four-poster bed, thousands of dollars for overseas travel for his distant wife, and spent thousands of dollars on luxury living (reportedly $ 120,000 a year).
Protection of carpels
The owner of the disputed stock exchange has been active on social media since his release. Although accused of fraud, investors and “Twitterati” put Karpeles in the wrong mouth; He maintains guilt.
“Most people won’t believe what I’m saying. The only solution is to really find the real culprits, he told reporters after the hearing.
If you lose an argument, what better way to get a win than to argue instead of attacking the person himself. Fortunately, there is a word for this: argumentum ad hominem. Kikeres.