GRAND RAPIDS, MI — More than two years after a federal raid at The Geek Group in Grand Rapids, an indictment has been issued against company leaders that alleges illegal Bitcoin trade and money laundering.
The indictment was signed Feb. 24 in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids.
Those named as defendants are Christopher Allan Boden, the company president; Leesa Beth Vogt, a company board member; and Daniel Reynod DeJager, a company consultant. The Geek Group, also known as the National Science Institute, was a registered non-profit organization.
Related: Tech center, once the ‘Geek Group,’ shuts down for good after raid
Federal prosecutors allege Boden sold Bitcoin to numerous customers in exchange for U.S. currency. They allege that more than $700,000 was sold.
The problem, authorities allege, is that Boden and the other defendants were not licensed with the U.S. Department of Treasury as a money services business or money transmitter.
Bitcoin is known as a cryptocurrency and is completely virtual. A Bitcoin is essentially a computer file typically stored in a “digital wallet.”
According to the indictment, prosecutors allege Boden obtained Bitcoin through DeJager who lived out-of-state. The defendants set up a Chase Bank account in mid-2017 to store proceeds from Bitcoin sales and also to buy more.
Related: Grand Rapids tech group raided by feds
Prosecutors allege that Boden and DeJager knew “that at least some of the funds involved were used to purchase or derived from selling controlled substances.”
They also allege that Boden advertised his ability to “mix” Bitcoin to customers. Mixing is a way to obscure ties between Bitcoin digital addresses and personal identities.
The Geek Group was raided by federal authorities in December 2018.
In previous years, it provided hands-on educational opportunities, including the use of high-tech equipment and facilities by students, inventors and others. It periodically handed out used computers at little or no cost to help children of struggling families.
Less than two weeks after the raid, The Geek Group announced it was closing for good.
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