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Twitch streamer DNP3 pleads guilty to wire fraud after gambling away funds invested in crypto charity project

Still frame of streamer DNP3 speaking into a microphoneAustin "DNP3" Taylor (attribution)
In January 2023, Twitch streamer DNP3 issued a statement admitting that he had gambled away investor funds while chasing losses. "Eventually I lost everything. In addition to my own life savings, I also irresponsibly used investor funds to try and 'get my money back' from the casino," he wrote. He had founded crypto projects including CluCloin, the Gridcraft metaverse project, and the Goobers NFT project.

Now, Austin "DNP3" Taylor has pleaded guilty to wire fraud after stealing around $1.14 million in investor funds from his CluCoin project, which had claimed it would "help others in need". DNP3 himself had built up a reputation of making generous gifts while livestreaming. He transferred the stolen funds to online casinos, where he then gambled them away.

Taylor faces up to 20 years in prison. The statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office announced that authorities would be notifying identified victims via NFT, and encouraging them to submit statements to the FBI.

Theme tags: Hack or scam, Law, Shady business