Bitcoin ATM Operator Indicted in New York Allegedly Running Illegal Business Attracting Criminals
A bitcoin ATM operator has been indicted in New York for running an illegal business “marketed towards individuals engaged in criminal activity.” The district attorney in charge described: “Robert Taylor allegedly went to great lengths to keep his bitcoin kiosk business as secret as possible to attract a clientele that would pay top dollar for anonymity.” Operator of 46 Bitcoin ATMs Charged
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg Jr. announced Wednesday that Robert Taylor has been indicted “for operating an illegal bitcoin ATM business that he marketed towards individuals engaged in criminal activity.”
The announcement states: Taylor operated bitcoin kiosks in at least 46 locations in New York City, mostly in laundromats, as well as locations in New Jersey and Miami.
Between 2017 and 2018, the 35-year-old “converted more than $5.6 million of his customers’ cash into bitcoin while charging a fee of between 10% and 20%,” the district attorney detailed.
Taylor is charged “with multiple counts of operating an unlicensed money transmission business, criminal tax fraud in the third degree, and offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree.”
Bragg described, “Robert Taylor allegedly went to great lengths to keep his bitcoin kiosk business as secret as possible to attract a clientele that would pay top dollar for anonymity,” elaborating: As the use of cryptocurrencies like bitcoin proliferate, they continue to attract a wide range of bad actors who are hoping to evade law enforcement.
The announcement further notes: In total, the search warrants resulted in the recovery of $250,000 in cash from Taylor’s apartment, as well as 20 bitcoin ATMs containing $44,000 in cash.
Forensic analysis showed that more than $5.6 million in cash was deposited into Taylor’s bitcoin ATMs between September 2017 and November 2018. More than $590,000 in fees were collected and approximately $160,000 were deposited into Taylor’s personal bank accounts.
However, Taylor only reported an income of approximately $3,000 on his 2017 tax returns and a loss of $140,000 on his 2018 tax returns.
In addition, his business did not have a money transmission license or a virtual currency business license (Bitlicense) from the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS). It is also not licensed by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). Tags in this story Bitcoin ATM, bitcoin atm operator, bitcoin atm operator charged, bitcoin atm operator indicted, Bitcoin ATMs, BTM, btm operator, Crypto ATM, Cryptocurrency ATM, illegal bitcoin atm, robert taylor
What do you think about this case? Let us know in the comments section below. Kevin Helms
A student of Austrian Economics, Kevin found Bitcoin in 2011 and has been an evangelist ever since. His interests lie in Bitcoin security, open-source systems, network effects and the intersection between economics and cryptography. SEC Risks Violating Admin Procedure Act by Rejecting Spot Bitcoin ETFs, Says Grayscale REGULATION | 5 hours ago Oman to Incorporate Real Estate Tokenization in Virtual Assets Regulatory Framework REGULATION | 1 day ago
Image Credits: Shutterstock, Pixabay, Wiki Commons Previous articleSEC Risks Violating Admin Procedure Act by Rejecting Spot Bitcoin ETFs, Says Grayscale Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article. Read disclaimerShow comments More Popular NewsIn Case You Missed ItNFT Marketplace Opensea to Add Credit Card, Apple Pay Support via Moonpay
According to the firm Moonpay, the non-fungible token (NFT) marketplace Opensea plans to accept credit card payments using the company’s payment infrastructure. The move follows Opensea gathering $23.5 billion in all-time sales volume, and the company’s recent Solana support announcement. ... read more.19 Million Bitcoin Have Been Mined Into Circulation, 2 Million Left to Be Found US Senator Cruz Introduces Bill to Prevent Federal Reserve From Using Digital Currency as Surveillance Tool India"s Crypto Trading Volume Plummets as New Tax Rules Enter Into Force Vaneck Report Calculates Bitcoin Price Could Tap $4.8M if BTC Becomes the Global Reserve Currency