TexasBitcoin

Coindawg Founder Arrested For Laundering Proceeds Of Fraudulently Obtained Small Business Administration Loans

Mar 23, 2023 · Sourced to the U.S. Department of Justice

The charges described here are allegations. The defendant(s) are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. This page reflects only what the Department of Justice has publicly announced, and links to the original release.

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, and Ivan J.

Announced

Mar 23, 2023

Status

Charged

Defendants

  • Charles Riley Constantage 54 · Allen, Texas · arrested

Charges

  • Conspiracy to commit money laundering

    Max: 20 years in prisonCharles Riley Constant· charged

  • Theft of public money

    Max: 10 years in prisonCharles Riley Constant· charged

  • Interstate receipt of stolen money

    Max: 10 years in prisonCharles Riley Constant· charged

Financial actions

  • seizure18 cryptocurrency ATMs in Texas and Oklahoma purchased with fraud proceeds to start Coindawg LLC, as well as Coindawg's website

From the announcement

As alleged, Charles Constant helped to launder over $1 million of proceeds from loans that his co-conspirators fraudulently obtained from the SBA. He converted the bulk of the crime proceeds into Bitcoin for his co-conspirators and used a portion of the rest to start his own lucrative cryptocurrency ATM business. Thanks to this Office’s teamwork with the HSI, Constant is now facing serious criminal charges for his alleged crimes. We will continue to hold accountable people who steal funds intended for small businesses that struggled as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Damian Williams, United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, U.S. Attorney's Office, Southern District of New York
As alleged, Charles Constant specifically exploited the Small Business Administration’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program put in place to help our small businesses weather the COVID-19 pandemic, for the purpose of expanding his criminal money laundering enterprise. Constant is accused of defrauding the federal government and robbing U.S. taxpayers with his illicit money-laundering scheme. HSI New York will continue to exhaust every resource at our disposal to ensure criminals like this will be held accountable for their actions.
Ivan J. Arvelo, Special Agent in Charge of the New York Field Office of Homeland Security Investigations, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI)

Investigating agencies

United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New YorkHomeland Security InvestigationsHomeland Security Investigations

Case details

Prosecuting office
Southern District of New York
Assets
Bitcoin
Asset SeizureCovid-19 Pandemic Loan FraudCryptocurrencyInterstate Receipt Of Stolen MoneyLaw Enforcement CooperationMoney LaunderingTheft Of Public Money

Primary source

Every fact above is drawn from the Department of Justice's own announcement — a public-domain government record.

Read the original DOJ release →

This is a research and reference page compiled from public DOJ announcements, not legal advice. Details reflect the government's statements as of its release date and may not capture later developments such as appeals, dismissals, or overturned convictions. Defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.