Nicholas Smirnow, the operator of the Pathway To Prosperity Ponzi-board “program” charged with fraud by U.S. authorities in 2010, has been sentenced in Canada to seven years in prison.
News of the sentence appeared Sept. 30 at MuskokaRegion.com.
Smirnow was arrested in Canada for P2P-related crimes in 2014. The United States has submitted an extradition request.
INTERPOL’s wanted notice for Smirnow is still active. It lists his age as 59 and says he faces charges of conspiracy, securities fraud, wire fraud and money-laundering in the United States.
In June 2010, the U.S. Department of Justice pointed to P2P as an example of international mass-marketing fraud that occurs on the Internet. The “program” was a Ponzi-forum darling. MoneyMakerGroup and TalkGold are referenced in P2P-related filings in the United States as places from which Ponzi schemes are promoted.
P2P operated in all the “permanently inhabited continents of the world,” a member of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service said in 2010.
Losses were pegged at about $70 million.
Ponzi forums and social media continue to drive traffic to hideous schemes. Recent examples of Ponzi-board programs include Traffic Monsoon, Zeek Rewards and TelexFree. There are many more.
NOTE: Thanks to a reader for the heads-up on Smirnow’s sentencing in Canada.