PARIS, FRANCE - NOVEMBER 12: In this photo illustration, a visual representation of the digital Cryptocurrency, Bitcoin is on display on November 12, 2024 in Paris, France. Bitcoin, the world's largest cryptocurrency, has been rising in value since the US election, reaching $89,637 at 8 a.m. this morning. For the first time in its history, the bitcoin cryptocurrency has surpassed the $90,000 threshold, supported by a wave of euphoria following the election of Donald Trump, considered favorable to cryptocurrencies, as president of the United States. (Photo illustration by Chesnot/Getty Images)
Los Angeles, California – An Arizona man who once lived in the Hollywood Hills pleaded guilty Tuesday to laundering millions of dollars and conspiring to obstruct justice in connection with a sprawling cryptocurrency investment scam that bilked investors out of more than $13 million.
Vincent Anthony Mazzotta Jr., 54—who styled himself as “Vincent Midnight,” “Delta Prime,” and “Director Vinchenzo”—admitted in federal court to fabricating a high-tech investment scheme built around fake artificial intelligence-powered trading bots and bogus government oversight.
According to prosecutors, Mazzotta and co-defendant David Saffron promised victims outsized returns from crypto investments placed with firms like Mind Capital and Cloud9Capital. The pitch centered on claims that their companies used automated AI trading systems to outpace the market—an increasingly familiar narrative in the volatile world of digital assets.
But the returns never materialized. Instead, the men siphoned investor funds for personal use and later compounded the fraud by creating an entirely fictitious government agency, the “Federal Crypto Reserve,” in an attempt to regain their victims’ trust. Through this shell entity, they solicited more money under the pretense of launching investigations into the original, now-defunct firms—firms they themselves had operated.
As the investigation intensified, Mazzotta also took steps to conceal evidence. After Saffron’s arrest, Mazzotta worked with unnamed co-conspirators to destroy critical evidence at Saffron’s apartment, including an iPad and the contents of a personal safe. He also conspired to falsify the records of a separate business, Runway Beauty Inc., in an effort to hide his role in the fraud from a federal grand jury.
The Department of Justice described the scheme as both sophisticated and cynical. “Vincent Mazzotta defrauded investors… and then doubled down by using a fake government entity to further victimize those who had entrusted him with their money,” said Acting Assistant Attorney General Matthew R. Galeotti.
IRS Criminal Investigation agents, who eventually unraveled the scam, emphasized that even elaborate financial crimes involving crypto assets remain traceable. “We have the ability to unravel complex financial transactions regardless of how sophisticated the scheme may be,” said Special Agent in Charge Tyler Hatcher of the IRS Los Angeles Field Office.
Mazzotta’s guilty plea includes one count of money laundering and one count of conspiracy to obstruct justice. He faces a maximum of 15 years in federal prison when he is sentenced on December 15.
Federal officials continue to investigate as they seek restitution for victims.
