Police tape marks off an area where the FBI was investigating at River and Leverett streets in Keene in March 2021. On Tuesday, a trial began for Ian Freeman, the last of the six people arrested as part of the federal raid who is still facing criminal charges.
Ian Freeman
Ian Freeman
Police tape marks off an area where the FBI was investigating at River and Leverett streets in Keene in March 2021. On Tuesday, a trial began for Ian Freeman, the last of the six people arrested as part of the federal raid who is still facing criminal charges.
CONCORD — Keene resident Ian Freeman went on trial Tuesday in U.S. District Court on felony charges related to his running a Bitcoin business that a prosecutor said laundered large amounts of money for scam artists.
Freeman, a libertarian activist and radio host who lost a GOP primary race for state Senate this year, has pleaded not guilty to charges of operating an unlicensed money- transmitting business, money laundering and income-tax evasion, as well as conspiracy charges in connection with the money-laundering and unlicensed money-transmitting allegations.
Four co-defendants previously entered guilty pleas in the case.
His attorney said the business was legitimate, operated openly and helped the community.
Attorneys for the defense and prosecution made opening statements Tuesday after selecting a jury of 12 people and four alternates in the court of Judge Joseph N. Laplante.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Georgiana L. MacDonald said Freeman’s business was based on the rule, “What you do with your Bitcoin is your business. Don’t tell me your plans.”
Bitcoin is a type of digital currency backed by computer code rather than a central banking authority. It offers permanent transactions and a level of “pseudo-anonymity” that is attractive to law-breakers, such as those running romance scams, MacDonald said.
This is a type of fraud in which a criminal adopts a fake identity online, gains a person’s affection and persuades them to send money.
MacDonald said the targets of this and other types of scams were told to send money to Freeman’s business, he would take a cut and convert the rest of the proceeds to Bitcoin for the scammer.
One 76-year-old woman was defrauded out of her life savings of $755,000, MacDonald said, alleging that Freeman set up sham churches as part of his business operation in order to avoid taxes.
“The churches were little more than letterhead,” she said.
MacDonald said a portion of Freeman’s operations relied on kiosks, or machines, that converted cash into Bitcoin, while other aspects of his business utilized a messaging application and a website.
“He knew his business made him rich by taking a portion of the money and sending the rest to scammers,” she said. “As long as they were willing to pay, he was willing to look the other way.”
Defense attorney Mark L. Sisti labeled as “absolute nonsense” some of the prosecution’s opening statements.
He said allegations of scams are pure speculation and the prosecution will not be able to produce any scammers who will testify.
“They can’t find one of them,” Sisti said. “We will push back on assumptions, speculations and made-up stories put before you.”
He also said Freeman is nonviolent and, through his church operations, has helped feed people, assisted people experiencing homelessness and set up an orphanage in Uganda.
“The church is real,” he said. “He helps; he doesn’t hurt.”
Sisti challenged the allegation that Freeman operated an unlicensed money-transmitting business, explaining that his client was arrested based on statutes written before the advent of cryptocurrency and that do not apply to his operations.
He also said Freeman did not have criminal intent.
“There are two sides to this particular coin,” Sisti said. “We need you to honestly believe the burden of proof is on the prosecution.”
The trial is expected to last about two weeks.
In September, co-defendant Aria DiMezzo, of Keene, pleaded guilty to a single count of operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business.
Earlier this year, an Elm City resident who legally changed his name from Richard Paul to Nobody and Derry residents Renee and Andrew Spinella also pleaded guilty, each to a single charge of wire fraud. (In April, the federal government dropped charges against an Alstead woman who had been indicted as a co-conspirator.) The FBI arrested the six in March 2021.
The FBI conducted several searches in Keene one day that month, including at 73-75 Leverett St. and at two properties on Route 101.
Prosecutors claim Freeman, who is known for the radio program “Free Talk Live,” and several co-conspirators ran a business that handled more than $10 million in transactions over several years.
According to the government, Freeman and other co-defendants used personal bank accounts and accounts in the names of “purported religious entities” — including the Shire Free Church, the Crypto Church of NH, the Church of the Invisible Hand and the Reformed Satanic Church — to conceal the nature of their business. Prosecutors say they then directed customers to falsely report that they were donating to churches or buying rare coins, not purchasing cryptocurrency.
Rick Green can be reached at rgreen@keenesentinel.com or 603-355-8567.
Ian Freeman
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