Crypto Mogul, Accused Of Tax Evasion, Cops To False Return - Law360.pdf

1. 4/6/23, 1:52 PM Crypto Mogul, Accused Of Tax Evasion, Cops To False Return - Law360
https://www.law360.com/articles/1594208/print?section=securities 1/2
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Crypto Mogul, Accused Of Tax Evasion, Cops To False
Return
By Theresa Schliep
Law360 (April 5, 2023, 6:47 PM EDT) -- A cryptocurrency founder accused of evading taxes on
millions of dollars in income pled guilty Wednesday to filing a false tax return and failing to file a
return with the Internal Revenue Service, according to a summary of the proceedings in a New York
federal court.
Amir Elmaani — also known as Bruno Block — pled guilty to filing the false tax return for 2017 and
failing to file one for 2018, charges that were outlined in a superseding information that was filed
Wednesday. That information accused Elmaani of failing to disclose millions in income that he earned
from his cryptocurrency activities, primarily through his creation of Pearl tokens.
Elmaani's sentencing has been scheduled for Sept. 11, 2023, the court said in a docket entry.
Although Elmaani had told investors that the number of Pearl tokens — a cryptocurrency created
through the Oyster Protocol, which he founded — was fixed, he ended up creating new tokens,
according to the superseding information. He sold those new tokens and converted them into other
cryptocurrencies and actual U.S. dollars.
Prices for Pearl tokens tanked when word got out that Elmaani had been creating new tokens despite
his statements to the contrary, the information said. He made millions from his cryptocurrency
activities, but didn't comply with his obligations to report the income to the IRS, according to the
information.
The original information, unsealed in 2020, charged Elmaani with two counts of tax evasion in
violation of Internal Revenue Code Section 7201 , and Elmaani pled not guilty to those charges.
Wednesday's superseding indictment included one count of Elmaani not filing a tax return for 2018 in
violation of IRC Section 7203 , and one count for filing a false tax return in violation of IRC Section
7206(1) .
The original information said Elmaani bought a $10 million yacht in 2018 and bought two homes
despite reporting little income in 2017 and none in 2018.
A legal representative for Elmaani declined to comment. But in a filing in March, he told the New York
federal court that he wasn't trying to evade taxes, but wanted to avoid "the scrutiny of Oyster
investors, his employees and the online community."
A representative of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York did not respond to
a request for comment.
The U.S. government is represented by Adam S. Hobson, Margaret Graham and Drew Turner Johnson
Skinner of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York
Elmaani is represented by Todd A. Spodek of Spodek Law Group PC.
The case is U.S. v. Amir Elmaani, case number 1:20-cr-00661, in the U.S. District Court for the
Southern District of New York.
--Editing by Neil Cohen.

2. 4/6/23, 1:53 PM Crypto Mogul, Accused Of Tax Evasion, Cops To False Return - Law360
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