A Fort Worth jury has convicted the founder of a cryptocurrency mining business for multi-million-dollar investment fraud.
Caleb Ward, 41, was convicted on November 17 for investment fraud through his business, Geosyn Mining, LLC, according to a release from the Department of Justice. The business, based in Fort Worth, allegedly collected money from dozens of victims across America for crypto mining equipment – but never followed through.
“This defendant targeted and preyed on North Texas residents who simply wanted to invest in emerging cryptocurrency technology,” said U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Texas Ryan Raybould. “Our Office will continue holding accountable those who prey on Main Street investors.”
A federal jury found Ward guilty on all counts, including one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and three counts of wire fraud, according to the release. This followed a six-day trial before U.S. District Judge Mark Pittman.
Ward was initially indicted in May. Now, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison for each charge.
The Securities and Exchange Commission had charged Geosyn, Ward, and company co-founder Jeremy McNutt in April 2024 for engaging in an unregistered and fraudulent securities offering.
Ward allegedly solicited funds from victims, promising to use their money to buy and host specialized cryptocurrency mining equipment, according to the DOJ release. He and his company reportedly promised clients he had locked in low electricity rates at 4.5 cents per kilowatt-hour, to buy and install specific mining machines on their behalf, and that the machines were “up and running” and mining Bitcoin at numerous facilities.
The reality, however, was much different. Many clients never received the machines they paid for, and others learned the machines were never turned on or connected.
Ward and his “coconspirators” allegedly sent clients photos of other customers’ mining machines, and sometimes provided serial numbers of different miners to suggest their equipment was bought, delivered, and installed.
Overall, clients wired more than $4.5 million to Geosyn from November 2021 to January 2023, according to the release.
“Ward transferred tens of thousands of dollars to accounts in his own name and used client funds to pay prior investors in a manner consistent with a Ponzi-style scheme,” the release reads.
Ward also spent investor funds on personal expenses, and paid business operational costs unrelated to clients’ specific machines – while claiming “every dollar would be dedicated to that client’s hardware and hosting.”
FBI-Fort Worth investigated, while Assistant U.S. Attorneys Chad Meacham and Joshua Detzky prosecuted the case with help from Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Weybrecht, according to the release.
“This conviction demonstrates the FBI’s commitment to identifying and investigating perpetrators of fraud who use investor funds for their own personal gain,” said FBI-Dallas Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock. “We encourage the public to thoroughly research investment opportunities and to contact us immediately if they suspect fraudulent activity.”
A crypto founder from Oklahoma – head trader of Wolf Capital – was sentenced earlier in November to five years in federal prison for promising an impossible 547% annual return, as The Dallas Express reported at the time.
Federal prosecutors unsealed an indictment in October against a dual citizen of the United Kingdom and Cambodia, charged with operating a $15 billion Bitcoin fraud and labor trafficking operation, as The Dallas Express also reported. Earlier, in August, FBI agents in Texas seized $2.8 million in cryptocurrency from a cyber criminal.