Aiden Pleterski Heads Jury Deliberations in Ontario Fraud Trial Over $30 Million Allegations

Jury begins in Toronto

Aiden Pleterski, the Canadian self-described "Crypto King," went to jury deliberations after closing arguments in his fraud trial in Ontario Superior Court in Toronto.

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Justice Shaun Nakatsuru delivered final instructions to the jury, and jurors began deliberations on Thursday after receiving those instructions.

Pleterski faced fraud charges over allegations that he defrauded his social media followers of about $30 million in 2021 and 2022, and the fraud charge could result in a prison sentence of up to 14 years if he is found guilty.

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Pleterski told the court, "I am innocent of these charges," and he said, "That is why I pled not guilty."

The Crown prosecutor Akshay Aurora told the jury that "Mr. Pleterski was no 'Crypto King.' Far from it."

Reporting for this sectionCointelegraphCBC

Crown and forensic figures

Akshay Aurora argued in his roughly 90-minute closing statement that Pleterski was "a thief" who stole investor money and used it "as he pleased." Ontario Securities Commission forensic audit testimony from Albert Ciorma said investors provided Pleterski with more than $36.3 million and that none of those funds were ever sent to FXChoice. Ciorma testified that Pleterski spent about $5.6 million on luxury vehicles, $4.9 million on credit card bills, $870,000 on travel and private jets and $598,000 on security.

Aurora told jurors, "The truth, members of the jury, are in the numbers, and the numbers do not lie," and he said the numbers showed Pleterski used investor money as if it was his own. Pleterski represented himself at trial, and CBC reported that he only cross-examined the first of 14 witnesses the Crown called and decided not to call evidence in his defence or to testify himself.

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Separate kidnapping case

A separate criminal case involving Pleterski’s kidnapping and torture proceeded alongside the fraud trial, with five men charged with kidnapping and torturing him in 2022. Daren Akiam-Fong pleaded guilty to nine charges and was awaiting sentencing in that kidnapping and torture case. Cointelegraph reported that Pleterski chose to represent himself in court in the fraud case while the criminal trial wound down toward jury deliberations.

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CBC reported that Pleterski addressed the jury for the first time at his Toronto fraud trial, thanking them in his brief closing statement Wednesday morning. Pleterski told the jury, "Had I not been forced to represent myself, that would have been proven," as the fraud case moved into deliberations.

Reporting for this sectionbloomingbitCBC