NEWS BRIEF: Film producer pleads guilty in investment scams
Ryan Felton cops to fraud and money laundering
An Atlanta movie producer has pleaded guilty to fraud and money laundering counts after promoting a pair of fake cryptocurrency schemes to investors. Ryan Felton, 48, “used 21st century technology to perpetrate an age-old fraud: lying to investors to steal their money and fund his own lavish lifestyle,” U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan said in a news release.
Investigators said Felton, in 2017, promoted an initial coin offering, or ICO, for an entertainment streaming platform promising to surpass Netflix, and said Atlanta rapper T.I. was co-owner of a related venture. Felton used around $2.4 million from investors to fund a $1.5 million house, a Ferrari, and about $30,000 in diamond jewelry, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia said. Details: hapnews.com