Israeli Police to Charge Cryptopreneur Moshe Hogeg in $290M Case

Cryptocurrency businessman and former Beitar Jerusalem FC owner Moshe Hogeg is set to be charged with fraud, theft, money laundering, and sex crimes. Israeli police recommended these charges on Wednesday after more than two years of investigation.

Police cited a wide range of evidence, accusing Hogeg of defrauding about $290 million from investors in Israel and other parts of the world. Using four different crypto projects between 2017 and 2018, the businessman illegally raised funds, which he allegedly used to sponsor his personal interests.

Hogeg is also accused of committing a range of financial crimes, including aggravated fraud, theft by an authorized person, conspiracy to commit a crime, false registration of corporate documents, forgery, money laundering, and tax violations.

Additionally, the police claim to have found evidence that Hogeg carried out sexual offenses and serial violations of women’s privacy during the course of the investigation.

Since authorities went public with the investigation in 2021, the police have reportedly questioned about 180 people, carried out numerous searches, and seized 900 pieces of evidence, money, and property across several countries.

Police added that the suspects related to the case have also been charged with a range of offenses, and all cases associated with Hogeg are now due for review by prosecutors.

Legal Trials

Hogeg’s legal troubles started in 2018 when he was sued numerous times, both in the U.S. and Israel, for alleged crypto scams. He was later detained in 2021 along with seven others on suspicion of being involved in massive fraud and sex crimes but was released to house arrest a month later.

Since then, Hogeg has been vehemently denying all the accusations filed against him. He also claimed that he was subjected to harsh treatment during questioning sessions in police custody, an assertion that legal experts claim holds validity in many similar cases.