The Chief Executive Officer of a multi-level marketing and bitcoin trading firm pled guilty to wire fraud and money laundering for operating a Ponzi scheme that defrauded over 90,000 investors worldwide.
Court documents say that Ramil Ventura Palafox, 60, a dual citizen of the United States and the Philippines, owned and operated Praetorian Group International and served as PGI’s Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, and chief promoter. Palafox falsely claimed that PGI was engaged in bitcoin trading, and he promised daily returns of 0.5 to 3%. PGI was not trading bitcoin at a scale capable of making the promised returns, however, and Palafox was paying the investors back with their own money or with funds received from other investors.
From December 2019 to October 2021, at least 90,000 investors worldwide invested more than $201,000,000 in PGI, including at least $30,295,289 in fiat currency and at least 8,198 bitcoin worth $171,498,528. As a result of Palafox’s actions, investors suffered losses totaling at least $62,692,007.
Palafox created a PGI website for investors to review their purported investment performance. From 2020 through 2021, Palafox caused the online portal to consistently and fraudulently misrepresent that victims’ investments were gaining value, misleading them to believe that their investments were profitable and secure.
Palafox spent money on expenses that served both personal purposes and to promote the fraudulent scheme. He spent approximately $3 million on 20 luxury vehicles, including automobiles by Porsche, Lamborghini, McClaren, Ferrari, BMW, Bentley, and others.
Palafox spent approximately $329,000 on penthouse suites at a luxury hotel chain and purchased four homes in Las Vegas and Los Angeles worth more than $6 million. Palafox spent another $3 million of investors’ money to buy clothing, watches, jewelry, and home furnishings at luxury retailers, including Louboutin, Neiman Marcus, Gucci, Versace, Ferragamo, Valentino, Cartier, Rolex, and Hermes, among others. He transferred at least $800,000 in fiat currency, plus an additional 100 bitcoin, then valued at approximately $3.3 million, to one of his family members.
Palafox is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 10, 2026, and faces up to 40 years in prison. As part of his plea agreement, Palafox has agreed to pay restitution of $62,692,007. Actual sentences for federal crimes are typically less than the maximum penalties. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Erik S. Siebert, U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia; Reid Davis, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Washington Field Office's Criminal Division; and Kareem A. Carter, IRS Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge of the Washington D.C. Field Office, made the announcement after U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema accepted the plea.
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jack Morgan, Zoe Bedell, and Annie Zanobini are prosecuting the case.
Case updates and additional information for victims of PGI, who may be entitled to restitution payments, can be found here.