A nonprofit organization that was created back in 1994 and provided people workspaces, low-cost services, and acted as an incubator for local innovation, has recently been raided by the for “unauthorized trading of bitcoin.”
According to WoodTV the non-profit organization, the National Science Institute – previously known as the Geek Group – has been around since 1994 but on December 21 of last year saw the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Homeland Security Agency raid its offices and seize computers, hard drives, and other equipment.
This, according to the president of the National Science Institute Chris Boden, as the group was “commercially trading in crypto-currency without proper authorization.” The non-profit organization has shut down 10 days after the raid occurred.
Boden took the lame, and added he may now face federal prison and legal expenses that he believes may go up to $100,000. While the raid occurred last month, the cause has only now been known. Through a live stream, Boden said:
I did a stupid thing, I made a bad decision, so I’m going to pay for it.
The assets that belonged to the non-profit organization are now set to be sold off. What charges Boden may be facing is, at press time, unclear. WoodTV contacted Federal officials, which declined to comment.
Notably, this is one of the first cases in which authorities raided an organization dealing with cryptocurrencies that wasn’t scamming its users. Back in May of last year, South Korean authorities raided UPbit over suspicion the exchange committed fraud.
