Co-founder of NFT Platform Blockparty Charged With Fraud
The former chief technology officer of Blockparty was arrested on Wednesday after U.S. prosecutors alleged he stole more than $1 million in cash and cryptocurrency from the company, which operates a marketplace for non-fungible tokens.
Rikesh Thapa, 28, of San Diego, California, co-founded the company in 2017 and left it in 2019 after refusing to return $1 million in company funds he agreed to hold in his bank account while Blockparty looked for another bank, prosecutors said. Thapa, who was arrested in Southern California, faces one count of wire fraud.
The case comes amid increased uncertainty in the cryptocurrency industry, which is in the midst of a downturn made worse by the collapse of crypto exchange FTX….