A self-styled crypto influencer has been sentenced to prison for running what prosecutors called a large-scale cryptojacking scheme that stole millions of dollars’ worth of computing resources.
The U.S. Department of Justice said on Friday that Charles O. Parks III, who went by the alias “CP3O,” was sentenced in Brooklyn federal court to one year and one day behind bars. Prosecutors said he defrauded two major cloud computing companies of more than $3.5 million in resources, which he used to mine nearly $1 million worth of Ether, Litecoin, and Monero between January and August 2021.
Parks admitted to wire fraud in December, after initially facing additional charges of money laundering and unlawful financial transactions that could have carried a 50-year maximum prison term. He was also ordered to forfeit $500,000 and a Mercedes-Benz, with restitution to be decided later.
“Charles Parks manipulated technology, stole millions in computer resources, and illegally mined cryptocurrency, and today’s sentencing holds him fully accountable for his deceitful actions,” said NYPD commissioner Jessica S. Tisch.
According to prosecutors, Parks set up fake businesses with names like “MultiMillionaire LLC” and “CP3O LLC” to trick the companies into giving him high-level access. He told one provider that he was running an online training company expected to serve 10,000 students. In reality, no such firm existed, and the computing power was instead used to mine crypto.
When the providers raised concerns over unusual data usage and unpaid subscription bills, Parks tried to deflect attention. Investigators later found that he laundered the mined crypto through exchanges, an NFT marketplace, payment processors, and banks. He converted the proceeds into cash to buy luxury goods, including jewelry, first-class flights, and the Mercedes-Benz.
Parks also promoted himself as a successful crypto trader online. In a September 2022 YouTube video, he boasted of his “MultiMillionaire Mentality,” offering coaching programs priced at $10 a month and private consulting for $150, paid in his own crypto token.
U.S. Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr said Parks was not the thought leader he pretended to be. “He was a fraud who exploited technology for personal gain while pretending to help others build wealth,” Nocella said.
