Six elite football players, including World Cup winners and former Barcelona and Sevilla stars, are facing allegations of fraud after promoting the crypto company that millions have disappeared with investor funds and thousands hold worthless digital tokens.
The 5th District Court in Barcelona Crypto and NFT The scheme drawn on the front by a group of Spanish and Argentine businessmen, with the help of promotions from players, newspaper Report.
The case, filed earlier this year by 12 victims, accuses Shirtum Europa Slu and the promoters who scam their investors, from at least $3.4 million (Euro 3 million) through the sale of non-functional NFTs related to the image rights of football purchased along with the company’s internal token, $shi.
Among those named in the complaint are World Cup winners “Papu” Gomez and Lucas Ocampos, former Barca players Ivan Rakitic and Javier Saviola, and Nico Pareja and Alberto Moreno.
The masterminds, Argentine businessman David Rozenquiig and Catalan entrepreneur Manel Angel Taurus, sons Mark Alberto Taurus and Manuel Morilas have been accused of creating “complex corporate structures” in Spain and Andera, designed to steal taxes and avoid personal liability.
The complaints include 13 expert reports and a financial analysis by top economics professor Prosper Lamothe. ProsterMothe deliberately describes the company’s structure as opaque and taxable.
The NFT was sold as an exclusive digital collectible, some selling for over $513 (450 Euros), but was not tradeable or supported on a functional platform.
Shirtum is said to have used player reputations to build credibility and presented it as a “founder” and public ambassador, according to complaints cited locally. Report.
In March 2022, Shirtum claimed that he suffered from two major crypto thefts, a victim of Huck, but no police reports were filed.
Meanwhile, investigators say the funds were sucked up for personal use and the Shirtum platform was quietly abandoned.
The soccer player served as the face of the venture’s promotion. “Papu” Gomez is a suspected best friend of mastermind David Rozenweig, who promoted other players as the company “founders,” then systematically erased other players from social media along with fellow players.
Big name, big loss
“This Shirtum Europa case really shows how tricky something tricky can be with cryptography and NFTS,” said Mohith Agadi, founder of the distributed fact-checking system fact protocol. Decryption. “People see celebrities like soccer stars and think it’s a safe bet, but that trust can be misused.”
The shirt scandal refers to the unstable relationship between Spanish football and the crypto partnership.
a Gambling ads are prohibited By being implemented in 2021, the LA Liga team will prevent them from agreeing to such a deal with betting companies, creating a vacuum of sponsorships where crypto companies rush to fill.
However, this code embrace has proven to be problematic.
Many LA Liga clubs It’s left After the worsening partnership with Crypto sponsors, “defaults, complaints, and forgotten experiences” have worsened, with several Spanish clubs suing Crypto Partners for unpaid sponsorship fees.
As Agadi pointed out, “Blockchain is great for tracking transactions, but fraudsters use it to forge legitimacy.”
edit Sebastian Sinclair
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