In a Brooklyn federal court, a crypto-influencer on social media sites such as Instagram, Jebara Igbara, also known as “Jay Mazini,” was sentenced to 84 months for wire fraud, wire fraud conspiracy, and money laundering. 

According to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, Igbara’s schemes resulted in substantial financial losses to unsuspecting investors, amounting to millions of dollars. 

According to the investigation, operating under the popular Instagram account name “Jay Mazini,” Igbara utilized his social media presence to portray a false image of wealth. 

Igbara posted videos in which he appeared to distribute large sums of cash to various individuals as gifts. However, it was revealed that behind this “facade,” Igbara was running multiple fraudulent operations, defrauding investors of at least $8 million.

Igbara has been ordered to forfeit $10 million as part of the sentencing. The exact amount of restitution owed to the victims will be determined later. Breon Peace, the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, stated: 

The prosecution of Igbara unmasked him as a fraudster who used his social media popularity to con investors out of millions of dollars. Shamefully, he targeted his own religious community, taking advantage of their trust in him so he could spend and gamble their hard-earned money. Hopefully today’s sentence will influence fraudsters, like this defendant, to think twice about the consequences before they victimize investors for their own benefit.

Per the investigations conducted by the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, from 2019 to 2021, Igbara maintained a significant social media presence on Instagram, amassing nearly one million followers. 

Presenting himself as a prosperous investor and businessman, he also incorporated elements of his Muslim faith into his posts to portray himself as devout and trustworthy. 

Videos on Igbara’s account showcased him distributing cash to unsuspecting individuals in grocery stores, fast food restaurants, and even to a woman he encountered at the airport who had lost her purse.

Igbara’s fraudulent activities primarily revolved around a company named Halal Capital LLC, through which he perpetrated an investment fraud scheme. 

Igbara promised investments in stocks, electronics resale, and personal protective equipment sales by soliciting funds from members of the Muslim-American community in New York. 

Igbara operated a Ponzi scheme, using most of the funds for personal expenses, luxury vehicles, and gambling. To maintain the illusion of legitimacy and keep investors engaged, he executed a second fraudulent scheme by offering to pay above-market prices for various crypto assets on his social media accounts. 

Victims would then receive manipulated images of wire transfer confirmations, falsely indicating that Igbara had sent payment for the promised crypto when, in fact, he had stolen the funds.

IRS-CI Special Agent-in-Charge Fattorusso described Igbara as a “crypto con man” who not only created a false online persona to deceive victims into investing in his schemes but also exploited his Instagram presence as evidence of his success. 

Fattorusso highlighted that Igbara callously scammed the New York Muslim community out of millions, spending and gambling away their money “without remorse.”

Featured image from Shutterstock, chart from TradingView.com

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