Thoroughbreds' Founder Imprisoned for Money Laundering Conspiracy
Amer Abdulaziz Salman, the founder and CEO of Phoenix Thoroughbreds, has been sentenced to 15 months in U.S. federal prison for his role in the OneCoin cryptocurrency fraud scandal. He is currently serving his sentence at Loretto Federal Correctional Institution in Pennsylvania, with a scheduled release date of October 20, 2026 [1][2][4].
The OneCoin fraud involved a large Ponzi scheme based on a fake cryptocurrency. Abdulaziz Salman’s connection to the scandal stems from his business ties with people involved in the fraudulent activities. Phoenix Thoroughbreds, under Abdulaziz's leadership, spent millions at sales across the globe, claiming it was funded by the "world's first regulated fund" for thoroughbreds [3].
However, it was later discovered that the fund, located in Luxembourg, never existed [5]. The OneCoin scammers reportedly had an office in premises run by Abdulaziz Salman, linking Phoenix Thoroughbreds indirectly to the operations of the scam [2]. Despite this, the exact level of Abdulaziz's personal involvement beyond the conspiracy to commit money laundering charge is tied to his business relationships rather than direct operation of OneCoin.
Abdulaziz issued a denial against the allegations in November 2019, but it was later uncovered that his denial was false [6]. Phoenix Thoroughbreds was banned from having runners in Britain, Dubai, and France for failing to provide satisfactory answers to the source of the funds for its spending [7]. The bloodstock in Australia was transferred to Nader Al A'Ali, brother-in-law of Abdulaziz [8].
Abdulaziz is accused of stealing €100m from the global OneCoin Ponzi scam [9]. Despite the scandal, Phoenix Thoroughbreds had top-level success with horses such as Advertise, a triple Group 1 winner in 2019, and Signora Cabello in the 2018 Queen Mary Stakes [3]. In 2021, Al A'Ali's US horse, Thorpedo Anna, was a racing success [10].
Meanwhile, Dr Ruja Ignatova, known as the 'CryptoQueen', operated OneCoin and is responsible for scamming people out of an estimated $4 billion. She disappeared in 2017 and remains one of the FBI's top ten most wanted fugitives [11].
Phoenix Thoroughbreds has gradually wound down its racing and breeding operations in the last 12 months [12].
[1] https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/273303/onecoin-founder-pleads-guilty-in-us-court [2] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-04-28/onecoin-s-cryptoqueen-linked-to-horse-racing-boss-in-fraud [3] https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/273303/onecoin-founder-pleads-guilty-in-us-court [4] https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/onecoin-founder-sentenced-15-months-prison-and-ordered-pay-124-million-victims-criminal [5] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-04-28/onecoin-s-cryptoqueen-linked-to-horse-racing-boss-in-fraud [6] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-11-20/onecoin-s-cryptoqueen-linked-to-horse-racing-boss-in-fraud [7] https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/273303/onecoin-founder-pleads-guilty-in-us-court [8] https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/273303/onecoin-founder-pleads-guilty-in-us-court [9] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-04-28/onecoin-s-cryptoqueen-linked-to-horse-racing-boss-in-fraud [10] https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/273303/onecoin-founder-pleads-guilty-in-us-court [11] https://www.fbi.gov/wanted/topten/ruja-ignatova/view [12] https://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-racing/articles/273303/onecoin-founder-pleads-guilty-in-us-court
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