In a significant ruling, a Boston federal court has sentenced Trung Nguyen, a 30-year-old from Massachusetts, to six years behind bars for running an unregulated cash-to-bitcoin exchange. Judge Richard Stearns emphasized the seriousness of Nguyen’s actions, which involved operating an illicit cash transfer operation known as National Vending from September 2017 to October 2020. The court mandated Nguyen to forfeit approximately $1.5 million in assets and face three years of supervised release post-incarceration.
Nguyen’s modus operandi included employing advanced tactics learned through online courses to intentionally mislead financial institutions and cryptocurrency platforms. This involved masquerading as a cash-based vending service, fabricating vendor lists, and strategically avoiding the term “bitcoin” to elude detection by regulatory authorities. This case underscores the increasing scrutiny and enforcement actions against unlawful cryptocurrency activities in the United States.