Crypto fugitive

A German international being detained under house arrest in New York over his alleged involvement in a $150m crypto scam is now a fugitive, according to reports.

Jicha reportedly tampered with his ankle monitor before failing to appear in a Brooklyn court

Horst Jicha was awaiting trial for securities fraud and conspiracy and was being held on a $5m bond which was put up by his family. Jicha reportedly tampered with his ankle monitor before failing to appear in a Brooklyn court.

John Marzuli, a spokesman for the Brooklyn US Attorney’s Office, said: “There’s a very active investigation underway to capture him,” before adding that the bond, $4m of which was guaranteed by Jicha’s family in Germany, will be forfeited.

Promises of returns

Jicha allegedly ran a cryptocurrency scam through his company, USI Tech, which promised investors returns of 140% in just 140 days around 2017.

Investors were told there were two methods by which they could earn vast returns: by investing in bitcoin mining and trading, or by referring other investors to the platform.

“Jicha brought USI Tech to the United States and aggressively marketed it to US retailers on social media and through in-person presentations in which he falsely guaranteed high returns on investments and made false claims about the legality of the platform’s investment offerings,” the US attorney’s office said.

When questions arose, Jicha stole millions of his investors’ money and fled the country”

“In reality the platform was just a facade, and when questions arose, Jicha stole millions of his investors’ money and fled the country,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge James Smith, speaking in January.

House arrest

Jicha had lived in Spain and Brazil before he was arrested in Florida over the case in late 2023. Having lived in Brooklyn, he was held in house arrest but not permitted to leave New York City or Long Island.

He was not allowed to leave his home without permission from Pretrial Services save for attorney visits, court appearances, and medical appointments. He was also forced to wear an ankle monitor and surrender all travel documents.

Pretrial Services had noticed the ankle monitor was not operating correctly

However, at a pretrial hearing, US District Court Judge Orelia Merchant heard that Pretrial Services had noticed the ankle monitor was not operating correctly and emailed Jicha asking him to appear at their office the following day.

Pretrial Services did not inform prosecutors about the situation until he failed to show up at the office – over 24 hours after they became aware that the monitor had potentially been tampered with.