Comedian William Banks went viral after posting a video of what he claims showed him escaping prison on social media, shortly before he went on a spree of “rug pulling” Solana meme coins.
Banks told Decrypt his goal was to be a Robinhood-like “hero” and donate $50,000 of the proceeds to charities supporting those suffering in Palestine following Israel's attacks on Gaza—sharing purported receipts of these payments on X.
In October, the comedian was charged and arrested in Westport, Connecticut, for stealing five yard signs that had the Israeli flag on them, according to local reporting. Westport Police confirmed his arrest to Decrypt. He claims to have been sentenced to eight months in prison, but his name does not appear in the database of those imprisoned in the state of Connecticut.
Nevertheless, Banks claims to have been creating content from inside prison since November. During a four-month social media campaign, the comedian went viral with clips shot using a phone that he claims to have smuggled into an unnamed prison in Connecticut. This included him poorly playing football in the yard, annoying his cellmate, and being bullied by other prisoners.
During this time, he claims to have received messages from “crypto bros” that were trying to “scam” him or push him to launch a token.
“They were trying to make money off me being in jail,” Banks told Decrypt. “So then I realized that I wanted to be a hero, like Robinhood. I just played their game with them. I was able to use what they were doing with all the crypto stuff to support Palestine.”
One of the “crypto bros” that contacted Banks was Jester, a self-defined meme coin marketer that wears a "Retardio" NFT profile picture. Banks says that he connected with Jester through their shared love of religion before the crypto bro started using their connection to launch tokens.
“He said he dresses up as a clown and goes on the side of the street and talks about God,” Banks told Decrypt. “I don't know what to believe, since everybody's just got a cartoon picture as their profile and I don't trust cartoons—I trust real people. I don't know if he's lying to me or not."
Jester told Decrypt that he helped Banks launch four meme coins, but the comedian denies working directly with him. The meme coin marketer added that he never intended to scam anyone and wanted to create a "long-term" token with Banks. But the comedian had other plans, he said.
Banks has made a name for himself through his Andy Kaufman-like comedic style, such as his standup set at a military academy where he pretended to be a marine. His work often pokes fun at religion, including skits in which he attempts to eradicate atheism while claiming to be Christian, Jewish, and Muslim—all while donning a custom necklace that combines the Star of David, the Crucifix, and the Crescent and Star.
His biggest hit, as of late, was a video in which he pretends to escape from prison by crawling through a hole in a fence. Banks' post on X gathered over 20.7 million views. Gizmodo spoke to Administrative Lieutenant of Westport Police Eric Woods who confirmed there was no such jailbreak.
That same day, he created the White Moses (MOSES) meme coin, a Pump.fun token that ran to a peak market cap of $257,000 in just over an hour before the deployer wallet sold its stash and caused the price to plummet. The first sale of $14,400 caused the token to drop 75% in just eight seconds. The token quickly recovered before two more sales of $17,540 and $3,800 prompted a 96% drop in just 25 seconds, from $227,000 to just $11,000.
“People kept making coins about me and then sending me some of the supply. Then I could just get money from that,” the comedian explained.
Social media users also reported that Banks promoted a number of other tokens, including William Banks (BANKS).
“I don't like crypto, I don't like meme coins. I think there's something really sinister, and there's something really twisted about all of it,” Banks said. “I think crypto is full of scammers, and it's ultimately a bad thing in society."
He has since deleted all social media activity promoting the meme coin, explaining that he raised $50,000 from the scheme. Banks said that he donated the fund to charities supporting those suffering in Palestine.
“I think it's a weird, weird world, and I don’t like the people I’ve been talking to,” Banks told Decrypt. “I just did it in order to give some money to my friends who I escaped with, and some money to Palestine. I don’t want to launch another one, I don’t want to post about crypto again.”
He posted receipts of five $10,000 payments to Palestinian charities on X, some of which can be independently verified through the charities' supporters feeds.
While some critics have continued to call him a “scammer” or “thief” for his meme coin antics, the overwhelming online reaction was to hail Banks as a Robin Hood-like figure since he appeared to be motivated by what proponents believe is a worthy cause.
“He escaped from jail only to immediately rug-pull a bunch of crypto bros to donate the money to Palestine…. he might be the greatest to ever do it,” political commentator and content creator Eden Riley posted on X.
Others were worried about the damage such a stunt could cause for the Palestinian movement.
“My concern stems from the possibility of the hoax alienating people who might genuinely come to oppose the genocide otherwise,” Klonny Gosch, a political podcaster who identifies as an anti-Zionist, told Decrypt.
So-called rug pulls, a type of exit scam all too common in crypto, can cause legal issues for those involved—such as the two individuals who were found guilty of fraud last year and sentenced to five years in prison over the Undead Apes NFT scam.
Gosch also said that he is concerned any potential illegality could lead to issues for the foundations that have received donations from Banks.
“As far as crypto investors losing out, though, I couldn’t really care less," Gosch said, "and there isn’t a more worthy cause than Gaza."
Edited by Stacy Elliott
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