Discover the story of Richard Heart, aka Richard Schueler, the famous crypto community influencer who is now being prosecuted by the SEC for embezzling millions of dollars of funds raised for his Hex, PulseChain and PulseX projects. Dive into this saga of fraud, lavish spending and false promises that ultimately led to the cryptocriminal’s downfall.
Once upon a time, there was a charismatic man by the name of Richard Heart, whose voice resonated passionately in the crypto community thanks to his well-known YouTube channel. But behind this flamboyant appearance lay a dark truth. Richard Heart, also known as Richard Schueler, was about to face a life-changing legal storm.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had finally caught its prey. It accused Richard Heart of embezzling millions of dollars of funds raised from gullible investors, who had contributed $1 billion to his crypto projects Hex, PulseChain (PLS) and PulseX (PLSX).
The saga had begun in December 2019 when Richard Heart’s controversial HEX project had been listed on Bitcoin.com. Investors had been lured by promises of high returns, but unfortunately, they didn’t know what they were in for.
In an official press release, the SEC revealed the details of its charges. Richard Heart and his PulseChain project were accused of fraud, having embezzled over $12 million to finance a luxurious lifestyle. Among the extravagances were sports cars such as McLaren and Ferrari, Rolex watches, and even a 555-carat black diamond, dubbed “Enigma”, the world’s largest black diamond. All acquired at the expense of gullible investors.
Richard Heart, too good to be true?
Richard Heart’s YouTube videos only made matters worse. He publicly boasted of his purchases of luxury goods from top brands such as Gucci, Prada, Versace, Burberry, Givenchy, Balmain and Louis Vuitton, in addition to a sumptuous Ferrari Roma.
But that wasn’t all. Richard Heart had also developed and promoted a crypto staking service for Hex tokens, promising extraordinary returns of up to 38%. A false promise that had lured even more investors into his fraudulent trap.
The SEC didn’t stop there; it also accused Richard Heart and PulseChain of violating federal securities laws by implementing this sophisticated scam.
Eric Werner, director of the SEC’s Fort Worth regional office, had stated determinedly,
“Heart called on investors to buy crypto asset securities in offerings he didn’t register. He then defrauded these investors by spending a portion of their crypto assets on exorbitant luxury goods. This action is designed to protect the investing public and hold Heart accountable for his actions.”
The SEC also pointed out that the crypto tokens HEX, PLS and PLSX, acquired by investors, were now worthless, leaving investors with empty pockets and a sense of betrayal.
Thus, the complaint filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission demanded restitution of ill-gotten gains, plus prejudgment interest, as well as penalties against Richard Heart.
People who had invested in Richard Heart’s blockchain projects were invited to come forward to the SEC, in the hope that justice would be done and light shed on this dark tale of fraud and deceit.
And so ended the short-lived glory of Richard Heart, whose outspokenness had been unmasked, leaving behind a landscape of desolation among swindled investors. This story will serve as a cautionary tale for all those who allow themselves to be blinded by the too-good-to-be-true promises of the ruthless world of crypto finance.
