The judge of the National Court of Spain Joaquín Gadea today issued an international search and arrest warrant against David Ruiz de León, founder of the Kuailian platform, investigated as the epicenter of an alleged pyramid scheme with cryptocurrencies.

In a resolution, dated June 30, the judge orders the arrest and imprisonment of Ruiz de León and Christian Albeiro Carmonawho is another of those responsible for the company supposedly specialized in investing with crypto assets.

The order was issued after two postponed hearings in which the founder of Kuailian presented excuses for not attending the appointment, which the judge interpreted as “willingness to hinder the investigations of the National High Court”, as detail Spanish media.

Given that both defendants allege that they live in the city of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, Judge Joaquín Gadea then issued an international search and arrest warrant against the two investigated for their extradition to Spain.

However, if either of them were to appear in the National High Court in the next ten days, the international arrest warrant would be paralyzed.

The accused face sentences of up to eight years in prison for a cryptocurrency scam that affected more than 65,000 people residing in Spain and that adds an economic damage of about 500 million euros.

Kuailian, investment with cryptocurrencies or pyramid scam?

Under the guise of a cryptocurrency investment platform, Kuailian attracted thousands of users with the promise of high profitability. To enter, people had to convert their dollars into ethers (the cryptocurrency of the Ethereum network)and then deposit them in a wallet controlled by the company.

Subsequently, those affected complained that they had not received the agreed reimbursement or the return of what was invested.

The investigation determined that the bank movements of the company present “multiple deviations and circular flows of capital that contradict the operating schemes provided by Kuailian.”

“A business logic is not recognized either, but rather a network of Spanish and foreign companies and accounts,” they add. other sources consulted.

The judge now describes the operation of the Kuailian platform as a “pyramid investment system” with cryptocurrencies and adds that clients could only access this system if they were invited by someone who already participated in the scheme, who received up to 10% of the investment they attracted.

In his documents, the magistrate states that there are indications that the platform never invested the money it received from users. And he does not rule out that the final destination of these funds “is the personal gain of those investigated.”