A US man could face up to 40 years in prison after being charged with illegally obtaining $110 million in cryptocurrency from cryptocurrency exchange Mango Market and its customers.
Abraham Eisenberg, 27, was living in Puerto Rico when he carried out the alleged plot, according to the Department of Justice (DoJ).
He is currently charged with 1 count of merchandise fraud, 1 count of merchandise manipulation and 1 count of wire fraud. The request follows his filing from Mango Markets itself last month. The company reportedly wants $47 million in damages and interest from the time of the attack.
Mango Markets is operated by the Mango Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO), which has its own cryptographic token (MNGO) that investors can buy and sell.
Eisenberg is accused of manipulating the price of MNGO perpetual contracts. Perpetuals are a popular type of futures contract in the cryptocurrency market.
He did this by selling himself a ton of MNGO perpetual contracts, thereby rapidly inflating the price of those contracts by a reported 1300% within an hour.
Eisenberg then said he used the increased value of MNGO perpetual futures positions to withdraw about $110 million in various crypto assets from Mango Markets, effectively draining the platform of all assets. It is
“Abraham Eisenberg allegedly manipulated the Mango Market cryptocurrency exchange to make over $100 million in illicit profits.
“His scheme allowed Eisenberg to leave others with the bag. I promise to prosecute you wherever you do.”
In addition to the criminal charges filed against him, Eisenberg faces SEC complaints regarding alleged securities law violations. Regulators seek civil penalties in addition to “permanent injunctive relief,” “deed-based injunctions,” and “withdrawal with prejudgment benefits.”
