California judge orders man to pay $36 million for crypto and forex fraud

A man previously accused of lying to customers about their cryptocurrency investments and instead using their funds for watches and jewelry was ordered to pay $36 million dollars, with the majority of those fines going to investors.

Judge Vince Chhabria of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California ordered William Koo Ichioka, 30, to pay $31 million to his victims and $5 million in a civil penalty, according to a statement on Friday from the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission. 

The CFTC charged Ichioka in June 2023 for misappropriating funds in a combined crypto, including bitcoin and ether, and forex scheme. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission also filed complaints as part of a parallel action. 

Ichioka described himself as someone who "began his quest at a very early age and has already amassed a multimillion dollar fortune". He told investors that they would earn 10% returns every 30 business days by participating in his commodity pool, according to the judge's order. 

Ichioka used some of the investors' funds to invest in stock in startup firms, digital asset commodities and forex, but also "commingled participant money with his own funds." He used that money to pay for rent, restaurants, bars, taxi rides, gym memberships and luxury vehicles, among other items, according to the order.

Ichioka pleaded guilty to prosecutors' criminal charges in July 2023, including wire fraud, aiding and abetting and committing securities and commodities fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office. He was later sentenced to four years in prison in January and ordered to pay a $5 million fine. 

The CFTC has flagged fraud in forex over the past few years. On Friday, the agency included advisories on looking for warning signs and how to spot fraud. 

"The CFTC also strongly urges the public to verify an individual or company’s registration with the CFTC before committing funds," the agency said. "If unregistered, a customer should be wary of providing funds to that company or individual."