Real estate developer testifies he gave 'Crypto King’ Aiden Pleterski $4.5M to invest
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he → testify → M
'I thought he was a sharp kid,' Sacha Singh tells Toronto jury
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Singh → think → jury
One of the self-described "Crypto King's" largest investors testified Wednesday about how Aiden Pleterski was touted as the "next big thing" and that he'd heard about others getting paid returns before he began investing thousands and later millions of dollars with him.
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he → describe → him
Real estate developer Sacha Singh, who testified virtually at Pleterski's fraud trial in Toronto, said he first met the now-27-year-old at a restaurant in Pickering, Ont., in the spring of 2021.
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he → testify → 2021
"I know a lot of big entrepreneurs in the crypto space are younger kids," Singh told the jury in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.
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Singh → know → Justice
"I thought he was a sharp kid and could be one of those unicorns."
Singh signed a contract for his first investment of $10,000 cash that April.
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Singh → think → cash
From there, the court was shown 22 more investment contracts between Singh and Pleterski totalling more than $4.5 million over the next 10 months.
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court → show → months
Wire transfer receipts were shown for most of the contracts, which ranged from $10,000 to $1.3 million, but a few others included notes they were paid in cash.
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they → show → cash
Pleterski is representing himself at his fraud and money laundering trial before the Ontario Superior Court of Justice.
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Pleterski → represent → Justice
That's the most money any of the 11 investors who've been called as Crown witnesses, so far, have said they gave him to trade on their behalf.
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they → call → behalf
Combined, the other 10 testified they provided Pleterski with roughly $2.3 million.
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they → combine → million
Most have said they never got any of their money back.
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they → say → money
Pleterski is representing himself at trial and has pleaded not guilty to fraud over $5,000 and money laundering.
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Pleterski → represent → 5,000
The Crown is alleging Pleterski guaranteed the money his investors gave him for trading, but never actually invested the funds.
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investors → allege → funds
Instead, the Crown argues Pleterski spent the money on himself, including on exotic cars, flights on private jets, lavish shopping and credit card bills that ran into the millions.
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that → argue → millions
Thought investment grew to $26M
Singh was introduced to Pleterski by another investor, Akil Heywood.
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Singh → think → investor
Like many investors who've testified in the case, Singh said Pleterski would message him his weekly percentage gains from Pleterski's trading in foreign exchange and cryptocurrency.
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Pleterski → testify → exchange
Singh, left, testified that another investor, Akil Heywood, right, introduced him to Pleterski.
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investor → testify → Pleterski
Singh kept a spreadsheet of those returns, which was shown in court.
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which → keep → court
By March 2022, his calculations on the weekly gains, which ranged from three to nearly 11 per cent, showed his investment had grown to more than $26 million.
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investment → range → million
Though he never received those returns — nor most of what he invested — Singh is one of the few investors who says he did receive some money back from Pleterski.
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he → receive → Pleterski
‘Crypto King’ investors testify they gave Aiden Pleterski a total $1.9M as trial continues
'Crypto King' investor who lost $890K recounts visit to Aiden Pleterski’s lakefront mansion
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who → testify → mansion
He testified he only continued investing because he received $700,000 back when he asked to withdraw a million dollars in November 2021.
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he → testify → November
The other $300,000 went to Pleterski as his fee for trading as laid out in the investment contracts.
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300,000 → go → contracts
"If you knew the source of that $700,000 was just money you already gave to him, would you have continued to invest with him?" Crown prosecutor Scott Patterson asked Singh in court.
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Patterson → know → court
"No," he replied.
'Selling assets'
Eventually though, Singh suspected Pleterski hadn't made that money trading.
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Pleterski → reply → trading
He recorded several phone calls with Pleterski about a year after his initial investment.
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He → record → investment
By then, Singh testified Pleterski "essentially ghosted" him when he asked to withdraw a large sum from his investment, which was supposed to be traded through a platform called FXChoice.
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which → testify → platform
In one of the recordings heard in court from around April 2022, Singh asks Pleterski "that 700,000 you gave me, did that come from FXChoice?
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that → hear → FXChoice
Or did that come from other investors that gave you money and you just gave it to me?"
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you → come → me
Crown prosecutor Scott Patterson, right, asked Singh if he would have invested with Pleterski if he knew the money he got back was the same money Singh gave Pleterski to invest.
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Singh → ask → Pleterski
Singh said no.
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Singh → say → ?
Pleterski tells him that it did come from that trading platform, but that since February 2022, he had been paying returns from his "own pocket" because, Pleterski said, FXChoice wasn't paying him out.
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FXChoice → tell → him
In other recordings Singh took, Pleterski also blames FXChoice for issues paying investors —claiming the platform only has access to a total of $20-$30 million — and elaborates on how he's been using his own money to pay returns.
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he → take → returns
"I'm actually selling assets to be able to pay people back because I feel like I have an obligation to do so," Pleterski tells Singh.
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Pleterski → sell → Singh
"I've pretty much been paying people out of pocket for months and months … and I can't afford to keep doing that.
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I → pay → that
'Crypto King' Aiden Pleterski spent investors' money on exotic cars, private jet flights:
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Pleterski → spend → cars
Crown
'Crypto King' investor recounts the moment he learned $311M investment fund didn’t exist
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fund → recount → moment
Around this time, Singh testified he was also shown a video Pleterski took of the FXChoice account, showing there was more than $311 million in it.
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Pleterski → testify → it
The video was shown to him by Mitchell Learning, another investor who testified last week.
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who → show → Learning
…and 15 more, not listed.
The Aporia
