The Aporia · Former ‘Crypto King’ associate tells court how he discovered millions owed to investors was missing

Former ‘Crypto King’ associate tells court how he discovered millions owed to investors was missing

Read the original at Toronto Star ↗

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APA MLA Chicago

Powell, B. (2026, October 10). Former ‘Crypto King’ associate tells court how he discovered millions owed to investors was missing. Toronto Star. https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/former-crypto-king-associate-tells-court-how-he-found-millions-owed-to-investors-missing/article_7155fb9c-abcf-456c-9e35-9c80a02656df.html

Dated when The Aporia collected the article, usually within hours of publication. Check the original for its exact date and byline.

Quick Summary

Mitchell Learning, who was close to Aiden Pleterski during his rise as the “Crypto King,” testified in Toronto about discovering that millions of dollars from investors were missing from Pleterski’s trading accounts. Learning met Pleterski in 2014 and invested $400,000 with him by 2020, promoting Pleterski to friends and family. As an insider, Learning helped manage investor relations but grew concerned when investors could not reach Pleterski for withdrawals. In December 2021, he confronted Pleterski about the missing funds, leading to the collapse of their relationship and the exposure of what the prosecution claims was a Ponzi scheme.

Written by AI on 2026-10-10, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

Aiden Pleterski, self-proclaimed "Crypto King," began facing fraud charges in Toronto on June 18, 2024. Prosecutors allege that from July 2020 to July 2022, Pleterski ran a multimillion-dollar Ponzi scheme by promising investors weekly returns of up to 10% and guaranteeing their principal was safe. Instead, he allegedly used the funds for luxury cars, private jets, and personal expenses, amassing millions in credit card debt. Before his arrest in May 2024, Pleterski had amassed over $300 million from investors. The trial, which started on June 18, involves a jury of 14 people (with only 12 deliberating), with the case expected to last a month. Despite representing himself, Pleterski has expressed his need for legal representation during the proceedings.

Written for “Crypto King Fraud Trial” on 2026-10-30, grounded in this article and the 4 other(s) covering the same event.

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 11% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.

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“The articles describe different testimonies given during Aiden Pleterski's trial, with Mitchell Learning testifying about discovering missing funds in 2022 and Sacha Singh detailing his investment decisions earlier.”

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Hedges 2 of 57 claims Outlet record 64/100

“While both articles are about Aiden Pleterski's criminal trial and involve testimony related to his fraudulent activities, Article A describes the Crown's opening statement, while Article B details a later testimony from Mitchell Learning.”

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“While both articles describe testimony during Aiden Pleterski's fraud trial, they refer to different days and testimonies within the ongoing trial.”

How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted

sentences that state something as happening or true

Uncertain

11%

2 of 18 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")

Leaning

not political

takes no side on a contested political question

Publisher signals

64/100

Toronto Star's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.

Outlets on this story

Economy/Business

Same framing elsewhere

articles that frame the event the way this one does

Analyzed 2026-10-10 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability

Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

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Who wrote this

Betsy Powell

10 article(s) here · 1 carrying a prediction

🔮 Pleterski came to broader public attention as Ontario’s self‑styled “Crypto King” after Durham Regional Police arrested him for fraud on May 14, 2024, alleging he used investors’ money to bankroll a lavish lifestyle rather than trade in cryptocurrency and foreign‑exchange markets, as he had promised.

2026-10-29 · assertive framing · What the jury didn't hear at the 'Crypto King' trial: Why he didn't have a lawyer — and why the judge said 'I am not fooled'

🔮 The teen, who has been diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and substance use disorder, will receive intensive, clinically driven programming during custody, followed by tightly supervised community reintegration.

2026-10-24 · assertive framing · Paid teen assassin sentenced to 'intensive rehabilitative' custody for murder of Toronto tow driver

🔮 “Whatever opinions people may have of me, my financial affairs or the circumstances that preceded these events, no financial dispute justifies kidnapping, violence or intimidation.”

2026-10-16 · assertive framing · 'Crypto King' switches courtrooms to attend his kidnapper's sentencing hearing. Then came an even odder twist

🔮 “I know a lot of big entrepreneurs these days in the crypto space are younger kids, very savvy,” Singh said, citing global examples of billionaires who launched companies in their teens or early twenties. “I kept on hearing about him over and over and over, so I thought he was a sharp kid — could be one of those unicorns.”

2026-10-15 · assertive framing · A real estate developer told jurors he trusted the 'Crypto King’ with $3.6M. Then he secretly recorded their calls

🔮 He said he was licensed — she wasn’t sure of the details — and that he invested money in foreign currency and would take a 30 per cent cut of any profits.

2026-10-14 · assertive framing · A dental hygienist told court how she trusted the 'Crypto King' with her savings. Then he went 'cold turkey'

🔮 As other investors this week testified, Learning said Pleterski told him his principal was guaranteed and he could expect weekly returns of between five and 10 per cent.

2026-10-10 · assertive framing · Former ‘Crypto King’ associate tells court how he discovered millions owed to investors was missing

🔮 Renting high‑end cars is “addictive,” and Pleterski would come back with stories about going out and enjoying himself, Wilson said.

2026-10-08 · assertive framing · Self-represented ‘Crypto King' tells his Ontario fraud trial: ‘I need a lawyer’

🔮 Things changed dramatically once Pleterski began soliciting money after telling people it would be used for foreign‑exchange trading or to buy commodities such as gold or cryptocurrency, Patterson said. “He told them their principal was guaranteed.

2026-10-07 · assertive framing · 'Crypto King' sold investors on returns of 5% a week — he spent their money instead: Crown says

🔮 Her son was on his way to the downtown Toronto courtroom but fell ill en route from Dryden, Ont., and had to turn back, “so that reunion hopefully will occur in the near future,” her lawyer, James Lockyer, told the court.

2026-09-29 · assertive framing · Ontario mom cleared of 'miscarriage of justice' in baby's 1999 death. Her manslaugher conviction based on 'discredited' shaken baby syndrome

🔮 When he identified himself as a police officer and yelled at him to stop, Abdoul Bah responded: “I will shoot you, man.”

2026-09-28 · assertive framing · 10-year sentence for Toronto carjacker who tried to shoot off-duty cop

Also by Betsy Powell

What the jury didn't hear at the 'Crypto King' trial: Why he didn't have a lawyer — and why the judge said 'I am not fooled'

2026-10-29 · Toronto Star

Paid teen assassin sentenced to 'intensive rehabilitative' custody for murder of Toronto tow driver

2026-10-24 · Toronto Star

'Crypto King' switches courtrooms to attend his kidnapper's sentencing hearing. Then came an even odder twist

2026-10-16 · Toronto Star

A real estate developer told jurors he trusted the 'Crypto King’ with $3.6M. Then he secretly recorded their calls

2026-10-15 · Toronto Star

Nothing else under this byline is closely related to this article, so these are simply their most recent.

All 10 articles by Betsy Powell →

Topics

Instagram Learning McLaren Toronto a Range Rover

Subjects

Pleterski PERSON · 15× Learning PERSON · 9× Aiden Pleterski’s PERSON · 1× Crypto King PERSON · 1× Instagram ORG · 1× Markham PERSON · 1× McLaren ORG · 1× Mitchell Learning’s PERSON · 1× Toronto GPE · 1× Whitby GPE · 1×

Narrative

Jurors spent much of the trial’s first week hearing a string of investors testify to how they first learned through friends, acquaintances and Pleterski’s social‑media presence that he had a knack for turning modest sums of money into exponential wealth through his savvy foreign exchange and cryptocurrency trading.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-10

🔮 As other investors this week testified, Learning said Pleterski told him his principal was guaranteed and he could expect weekly returns of between five and 10 per cent.

2026-10-10 · Toronto Star

Former ‘Crypto King’ associate tells court how he discovered millions owed to investors was missing · assertive framing

Claims (18 extracted, 2 hedged)

Mitchell Learning’s ringside seat to the “Crypto King” lifestyle of luxury cars and private jets collapsed in 2022, when he cracked into Aiden Pleterski’s trading accounts and discovered that millions belonging to him and dozens of other investors wasn’t there. asserted

millions → collapse → investors

Learning testified Friday at Pleterski’s criminal trial in a downtown Toronto courtroom in front of a jury. asserted

Learning → testify → jury

Pleterski, 27, has pleaded not guilty to defrauding investors and money laundering and is representing himself. asserted

Pleterski → plead → himself

he → spend → exchange

The prosecution alleges it was a sham, and that Pleterski was operating a Ponzi scheme. asserted

Pleterski → allege → scheme

Learning said he first met Pleterski playing baseball in 2014, and later sent him a message in 2020 after seeing him on Instagram posing with a Range Rover and a McLaren luxury vehicle. asserted

he → learn → Rover

“He (Pleterski) told me he was trading ... Forex and crypto,” testified Learning, who runs his family’s Markham-based construction business. asserted

who → tell → business

He was drawn into Pleterski’s orbit, investing $400,000 and encouraging his family and friends to do the same. asserted

He → draw → same

As other investors this week testified, Learning said Pleterski told him his principal was guaranteed and he could expect weekly returns of between five and 10 per cent. uncertain

he → testify → cent

Learning told jurors how he morphed from friend to trusted insider who handled bank drafts and acted as a go‑between with investors, while watching Pleterski add to his luxury car collection and move from his parents’ home in Whitby into an 8,000‑square‑foot mansion on Lake Ontario. asserted

Pleterski → tell → Ontario

It was purchased through a vendor‑take‑back arrangement where the owner carries the mortgage, he explained to jurors. asserted

he → purchase → jurors

Learning also joined Pleterski on private‑jet excursions, flying to Ohio to watch a boxing match, and to Florida and Turks and Caicos Islands for short trips — all arranged by Pleterski, he said. asserted

he → join → Pleterski

For about six weeks, Learning told the court, Pleterski paid him about $2,000 a week to help him handle investors, some looking to withdraw money and others wanting to invest with the whiz kid, whose father was also helping his son juggle the incoming bank drafts. asserted

son → tell → drafts

But things started to shift. asserted

things → start → ?

Investors looking to withdraw funds couldn’t contact Pleterski. asserted

Investors → look → Pleterski

Some turned to Learning, “messaging me asking if I could get a hold of him.” uncertain

I → turn → him

Around Christmas 2021, Learning testified he told Pleterski people were worried about their money and needed answers. asserted

people → testify → answers

At one point, Pleterski sent him a video purporting to show he had $311 million in an account. asserted

he → send → account