Cryptocurrency
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‘Bitcoin Rodney’ Pushed Crypto With Jamie Foxx and Rick Ross. Now He’s Under Arrest
With celebrity endorsements to spare, the influencer promised he could easily make you a millionaire — and promoted an alleged pyramid schemeTHIS ARTICLE WAS produced in collaboration with Court Watch, an independent outlet that unearths overlooked court records.
The dream of making a quick and easy fortune in cryptocurrency took yet another hit on Friday with the arrest of Rodney Burton, a.k.a. “Bitcoin Rodney,” a relentless promoter who sold himself as a high-tech financial guru and was often seen out with celebrity pals including Jamie Foxx, Rick Ross, Marlon Wayans, and Tiffany Haddish.
Burton, whose 2021 “Reinvent Yourself With Crypto” event in Miami also included appearances by singer Akon, FUBU founder and Shark Tank regular Daymond John, and convicted fraudster Jordan Belfort (whose memoir The Wolf of Wall Street inspired the Martin Scorsese film), was taken into custody in Florida and is awaiting transfer to Maryland, where he’s being charged. The criminal complaint that was filed rests on an affidavit by a special agent of the IRS who found probable cause to believe that one of the crypto operations that Burton was involved in was an “unlicensed money transmitting business.” Burton is accused, in short, of illegal transfer of currency — but the broader accusations in the legal filing paint a picture of a pyramid scheme operated by several people, including Burton. (Burton did not respond to requests for comment through social media or his public defender.)