The U.S. Department of Justice has indicted a Texas resident for conducting a fraudulent initial coin offering, according to case documents.

Rowland Marcus Andrade founded the NAC foundation and released a white paper in 2017 claiming the foundation had created two cryptocurrencies, AML Bitcoin and AtenCoin. 

The paper stated that AML Bitcoin would comply with anti-money laundering and know-your-customer regulations using proprietary technology to confirm the identities of AML Bitcoin users.

The foundation allegedly collected at least $5.6 million from over 2,400 investors promising that once the technology was developed they would receive the currency. Andrade then misrepresented the state of development, claimed the foundation was close to reaching agreements with various government agencies, and used investor funds for personal purchases including a new house. 

The SEC has also charged Andrade and political lobbyist Jack Abramoff with conducting a fraudulent and unregistered ICO. 

By Emily Mason