CNBC: $150 million cryptocurrency fraud suspect Horst Jicha abandons bail and flees

On October 11th, according to CNBC, a German national man was sentenced to $5 million in home confinement in New York City on charges of being responsible for a $150 million cryptocurrency fraud. The guarantors were his partner and children, but he has now become a fugitive. John Marzulli, spokesperson for the Brooklyn United States Attorney's Office, said on Friday that "a very active investigation is currently underway to apprehend him." The defendant, Horst Jicha, did not appear in Brooklyn Federal Court as scheduled. Marzulli added, 'We will confiscate the bail money,' which means the prosecution will seek to obtain $4 million in bail money personally guaranteed by Jicha's partner, children, and three other individuals residing in Germany. An additional $1 million in cash has been deposited into a US federal government account as collateral for bail. A prosecutor from the Brooklyn United States Attorney's Office told the judge during a hearing on Thursday that Jicha was suspected of tampering with his ankle monitor on October 3, which was originally intended to address pre-trial issues in the case. After noticing that Jiha's ankle monitor was not working, the pre-trial service officer sent him an email requesting him to come to their office the next day. The prosecutor told US District Judge Orelia Merchant that Jicha did not appear.