A Canadian businessman will serve 41 months in U.S. federal prison after pleading guilty to one count of obstruction of an official proceeding. The sentence was jointly announced by U.S. Attorney Edward R. Martin Jr. and acting Special Agent in Charge Kai Wah Chan of Homeland Security Investigations.

According to a Feb. 6 statement, Firoz Patel’s sentencing relates to 450 bitcoins he failed to disclose in a 2020 trial. Officials accused Patel of not informing the U.S. District Court of these Bitcoin holdings after he was convicted and sentenced to 36 months for operating Payza, an unlicensed cryptocurrency payment processing platform.

Besides the prison sentence, Patel also agreed to forfeit any property involved in the offense, as well as any traceable property. However, instead of complying with the order, Patel consolidated his cryptocurrency proceeds and attempted to transfer them to Binance. However, after the exchange closed his account for allegedly violating its terms of service, Patel withdrew the bitcoins.

Shortly before reporting to prison sometime after April 22, 2021, Patel deposited the 450 bitcoins with an unnamed cryptocurrency exchange. The exchange later froze his account, prompting Patel to try to hide the bitcoins. In one interaction with the exchange, Patel argued for the release of the funds.

“[I]f this is about me, then realize that I am not beholden to any actions by the USA or any other government authorities. I have paid my dues and I owe nothing to anybody,” the businessman reportedly told the exchange.

While it is unclear when the interactions occurred, the statement said Patel took steps, including providing false Know Your Customer (KYC) information, to get the exchange to release the bitcoins. After law enforcement became aware of this, an investigation was launched which Patel learned of while serving his first sentence.

To avoid prosecution, Patel and an accomplice impersonated an attorney and engaged in fake negotiations with the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Their plan was to stall until Patel’s release and then flee to Canada. However, investigators discovered the impersonation and indicted Patel in May 2023. He has been in custody since June 2021.

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