Roger Ver, a prominent figure in the Bitcoin Cash community and often referred to as “Bitcoin Jesus,” has been apprehended by authorities in Spain. This follows charges of tax evasion leveled against him by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).
The DOJ’s indictment, revealed on April 29, accuses Ver of evading taxes to the tune of $50 million, committing mail fraud, and filing inaccurate tax returns. Ver is now awaiting extradition to the United States to face these charges.
The Allegations Against Roger Ver
The indictment alleges that Ver, a controversial supporter of Bitcoin Cash, misrepresented the extent of his Bitcoin holdings to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). This deception, involving his companies MemoryDealers.com Inc. and Agilestar.com Inc., allegedly resulted in a loss of $48 million.
The indictment further states that Ver renounced his U.S. citizenship in 2014 and became a citizen of St. Kitts and Nevis. However, he failed to report capital gains and pay the necessary “exit tax” on his substantial Bitcoin assets. By 2014, it is reported that Ver and his companies owned approximately 131,000 BTC, each valued at around $871.
The authorities also claim that Ver provided false information to a law firm and an appraiser, leading to the filing of tax returns that undervalued his businesses and did not include his personal BTC ownership. In 2017, before the famous bull run, Ver sold 70,000 Bitcoins for an estimated $240 million but did not report these gains to the IRS, despite his U.S.-based corporations holding the cryptocurrency.
On April 25, 2024, Ver tweeted, “Don’t expect bad people to do good things.” The DOJ alleges that Ver concealed from his accountant that he had received and sold bitcoins belonging to MemoryDealers and Agilestar in 2017. Consequently, his 2017 individual income tax return did not report any gain or pay any tax related to the distribution of bitcoins to him.
Ver has been a part of the BTC community since its early days, earning the nickname “Bitcoin Jesus” for reportedly giving away the cryptocurrency for free. However, he later shifted his support to Bitcoin Cash, a hard fork of BTC, claiming it to be the true Bitcoin.
Dan Held, a Bitcoin enthusiast, has described Ver as a “net negative” for Bitcoin. Held believes that Ver “deserves everything that he’s about to get” after he “nearly destroyed Bitcoin.” Held claims that Ver tried to get him fired, damaged his relationships, and tarnished his reputation. He also accuses Ver of creating unrealistic expectations around Bitcoin, leading to a “civil war” within the community.
