DOJ Indictment Shadows Kevin Spacey Film – Co-Writer Charged in $340M Crypto Ponzi

Kevin Spacey’s comeback film after facing sexual misconduct allegations was reportedly written by and stars a man indicted by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) for his connection to a crypto Ponzi scheme, Variety reports.

Vladimir Okhotnikov, who co-wrote and stars in “Holiguards Saga — The Portal of Force,” was charged with wire fraud in 2023 for his alleged role in a global crypto scheme that saw $340 million fleeced from victims.

U.S. officials said Okhotnikov, better known as Lado, and four other Russian nationals who co-founded the DeFi investment platform Forsage could face up to 20 years in prison on the charge.

“These individuals are alleged to have used trendy technology and opaque language to swindle investors out of their hard-earned cash,” Special Agent in Charge Ivan J. Arvelo of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) New York said in a statement at the time. “But, as the indictment alleges, all they were doing was running a classic Ponzi scheme.”

In 2022, Okhotnikov was one of 11 people charged by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for operating the digital asset fraud “in which investors earned profits by recruiting others into the scheme.”

According to Variety, the founder-turned-filmmaker attempted to have the SEC’s case against him dismissed later that year.

Okhotnikov has denied all allegations, telling the entertainment news outlet that “no further action” had been taken by officials since then and that the publication of the indictment and subsequent misleading headlines had caused “harm” that “went beyond reputation.”

On August 30, Spacey made an appearance at the Venice Film Festival to debut the trailer for “Holiguards Saga — The Portal of Force.”

Here’s the trailer shown in Venice for Kevin Spacey’s Holiguards Saga – The Portal of Force starring him with Dolph Lundgren, Eric Roberts and Tyrese, all seen in this 2-minute clip. pic.twitter.com/5pXXkjMyWe

A handful of high-profile actors are also set to appear in the film, including Tyrese Gibson, Dolph Lundgren and Eric Roberts.

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