RUJA IGNATOVA

Ignatova, Ruja German citizen and convicted fraudster Ruja Plamenova Ignatova (Bulgarian: уa ламенова натова; romanized: Rua Plamenova Ignatova; born May 30, 1980) is of Bulgarian descent. She is best known for being the creator of OneCoin, a fraudulent cryptocurrency scheme that The Times called "one of the biggest scams in history." She is the focus of the 2022 book of the same name and the 2019 BBC podcast series The Missing Cryptoqueen. Ignatova has been evading capture by numerous international law enforcement agencies since 2017. She was accused of money laundering, wire fraud, and securities fraud by American authorities in the early months of 2019.

In June 2022, her name was added to the FBI's Ten Most Wanted list. Ignatova, who was born in Ruse, Bulgaria, in 1980, immigrated to Germany when she was ten years old. She spent a portion of her formative years in Schramberg, Baden-Württemberg. There are no specifics about the college, course, or matriculation date provided in the claims that she may have attended the University of Oxford in England. [failed verification] With the dissertation Art. 5 Nr. 1 EuGVO: Chancen und Perspektiven der Reform des Gerichtsstands am Erfüllungsort, she received a PhD in private international law from the University of Constance in Germany in 2005. It discusses lex causae in the context of conflicts of laws.

She allegedly also held a position with McKinsey & Company. She was found guilty of fraud in Germany in 2012 in connection with the purchase of a business by her and her father, Plamen Ignatov, that was later declared bankrupt under questionable circumstances; she was given a 14-month prison sentence with a suspended sentence. She was involved with BigCoin, a multi-level marketing fraud, in 2013. She established the OneCoin pyramid scheme in 2014.

Ignatova vanished on October 25, 2017, as a result of information about expanding police inquiries into OneCoin. Konstantin Ignatov, her brother, pleaded guilty to fraud and money laundering in 2019 in connection with the scheme. The investigation into "a lawyer from Neu-Isenburg" for potential money laundering was confirmed by prosecutors in Darmstadt, Germany, in 2022. In 2016, Ignatova transferred 7.69 million euros into one of her personal accounts. Police searched residences and places of business in Weilburg, Baden-Baden, Frankfurt am Main, Bad Homburg, Neu-Isenburg, and Vaihingen in January 2022.

The German Federal Criminal Police Office and North Rhine-Westphalia Police then made the announcement that Ignatova is wanted on suspicion of fraud. A €5,000 reward has been offered by the Federal Criminal Police Office for information that results in an arrest. Next came an Interpol "red notice. In response, Europol added Ignatova to its list of "most wanted" individuals; however, according to Deutsche Welle, the Europol listing was later taken down for an unspecified reason.

At a joint press conference with the IRS Criminal Investigation and the United States Attorney's Office Southern District of New York, the Federal Bureau of Investigation added Ignatova to its list of the Ten Most Wanted Fugitives and announced that it was offering a reward of up to $100,000 for information leading to her capture. A subsequent episode of the FBI's podcast and YouTube series Inside the FBI, which was focused on Ignatova and the OneCoin case, was released.

Ignatova was wed to German attorney Bjorn Strehl, and the couple welcomed a daughter in 2016.

Ruja Ignatova Added to FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives List

The FBI today announced the addition of Ruja Ignatova to its Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list for her alleged leadership of a massive fraud scheme that affected millions of investors worldwide.

Aliases:

Dr. Ruja Ignatova, Ruja Plamenova Ignatova, Ruja P. Ignatova, "CryptoQueen"

Date(s) of Birth Used - May 30, 1980

Place of Birth - Bulgaria

Hair - Dark Brown to Black

Eyes - Brown

Sex - Female

Race - White

Languages - English, German, Bulgarian

Reward: The FBI will pay up to $100,000 for information that results in Ruja Ignatova's arrest. Remarks: It's thought that Ignatova travels with armed guards and/or allies. Ignatova might have changed her appearance through plastic surgery or another method.

Ruja Ignatova is sought after for allegedly taking part in a significant fraud scheme. Ignatova and others are accused of defrauding investors all over the world of billions of dollars starting around 2014. OneCoin Ltd., a business with its headquarters in Bulgaria and which advertised a fictitious cryptocurrency, was founded by Ignatova. Ignatova is accused of using deceptive statements and representations to lure investors into OneCoin in order to carry out the scheme. She is accused of giving her victims instructions on how to transfer investment funds to OneCoin accounts in order to buy OneCoin packages, which led her victims to send wire transfers that were supposed to represent these investments.

OneCoin is thought to have defrauded victims out of more than $4 billion over the course of the scam. Up until October 2017, Ignatova presided as OneCoin's principal figurehead. Ignatova left Sofia, Bulgaria, on October 25, 2017, and she may have travelled elsewhere after that. She is permitted to travel to the United Arab Emirates, Bulgaria, Germany, Russia, Greece, and/or Eastern Europe on a German passport. Ignatova was charged on October 12, 2017, in the Southern District of New York's United States District Court, and a federal arrest warrant was issued for her. Ignatova was charged with one count each of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, conspiracy to commit securities fraud, and securities fraud on February 6, 2018, according to a superseding indictment. Send a Tip: If you have any information about this person, please get in touch with the FBI office closest to you or the nearest embassy or consulate of the United States.