Elmin Redzepagic
Introduction
Elmin Redzepagic is a 25-year-old from Wolcott, Connecticut, who pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Kari A. Dooley in Bridgeport to offenses tied to a cryptocurrency fraud scheme. Per court documents and statements made in court, from roughly May 2021 to March 2025 he presented himself to investors as a cryptocurrency investor earning high rates of return. The scheme, announced by U.S. Attorney David X. Sullivan, took in more than 10 victims and produced a net loss of about $1.16 million. Redzepagic was arrested on February 12, 2026, and is out on a $500,000 bond pending sentencing.
Background Information
Between roughly May 2021 and March 2025, Redzepagic told victims who made an initial investment that they had earned a substantial profit, but that they had to pay additional fees, which he called “gas fees,” to withdraw it. He also claimed to work as part of a team that included someone known as “The Chef,” who supposedly led the operation and determined who, how, and when investors would receive their profits. In reality, none of it was true: Redzepagic did not invest victims’ funds in cryptocurrency, and no genuine trading returns existed.
The Controversy or Incident That Led to Their Cancellation
Pleaded guilty. Redzepagic admitted to wire fraud, international money laundering, and making a false statement to IRS Criminal Investigation agents, with sentencing pending.
Rather than investing victims’ money, Redzepagic transferred the funds to Stake.com, an offshore gambling platform. Court documents state he used the site to receive and hold proceeds of the scheme, to generate cryptocurrency addresses that victims used to transfer Bitcoin to him, and to make large payments meant to lull victims throughout the course of the scheme. He then lost victims’ funds gambling on Stake.com, causing a net loss of $1,159,945.34 to more than 10 victims. The deception extended to the investigation itself: when IRS Criminal Investigation agents interviewed him in September 2023, he made several false statements. He ultimately pleaded guilty to two counts of wire fraud, each carrying a maximum of 20 years; one count of international money laundering, carrying a maximum of 20 years; and one count of making a false statement to IRS Criminal Investigation agents, carrying a maximum of five years.
Public Reaction and Consequences
Public awareness of the case came through the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Connecticut, which announced the guilty plea in a release detailing the scheme. The immediate consequences were significant: Redzepagic was arrested on February 12, 2026, and then released on a $500,000 bond pending sentencing. The matter was investigated by the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division, and the case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Susan Wines. His plea covers offenses carrying decades in prison, though no sentence has been imposed yet. For the more than 10 victims, the plea marked official acknowledgment that the roughly $1.16 million they lost went not into cryptocurrency but into an offshore gambling site.
Current Status
As of the guilty-plea announcement, Redzepagic is released on a $500,000 bond pending sentencing, which Judge Kari A. Dooley scheduled for January 11, 2027. He has admitted guilt to two counts of wire fraud, one count of international money laundering, and one count of making a false statement to IRS Criminal Investigation agents, but no prison term has been imposed. The plea closes the guilt phase; the length of any imprisonment will be decided at the January hearing.
Impact on Their Career/Life
The plea effectively ends Redzepagic’s run as a purported cryptocurrency investor, an identity he maintained from approximately May 2021 through March 2025. At 25, he has pleaded guilty in federal court to two counts of wire fraud, international money laundering, and making a false statement to IRS Criminal Investigation agents. Each of the wire fraud counts and the money laundering count carries a maximum prison term of 20 years, and the false-statement count carries a maximum of five years. Until sentencing, he remains out on bond after admitting to a scheme that cost more than 10 victims over $1.1 million.
Sources
- U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Connecticut, “Wolcott Man Pleads Guilty to Charges Stemming from Cryptocurrency Fraud Scheme” — source