- The court has ordered the Mutant Ape Planet NFT creator to forfeit $1.4 million
- The court found the NFT creator guilty of creating and selling a ripoff of the popular Mutant Ape Bored Ape collection
- He was also fined $15,000
A U.S. court has ordered the Mutant Ape Planet NFT project creator to return the $1.4 million he had earned from the project and pay a fine of $15,000. The court found the creator, Aurelien Michel, guilty of creating and profiting from an outright ripoff of Yuga Labs’ Mutant Ape Yacht Club (MAYC) NFT collection. Michel had previously admitted to using the project to steal collectors’ funds, something that speaks to the intentions of some creators in the web3 world.
Actual Loss Can’t Be Determined
The court, however, didn’t agree with the prosecutors’ recommendation that Michel be jailed for around three years. The court gave the NFT creator one month which it said he has already served in custody.
Michel and his team pocketed close to $3 million, with the court ruling that the actual loss incurred can’t be determined because it involves digital collectibles. According to the court, purchasers received something whose value “is unclear.”
The NFT creator was arrested in 2023 for defrauding collectors he argued had turned toxic. At the time, investigating authorities noted that Michel had no intentions of continuing with the project.
Mutant Ape Planet Just One Replica
Michel had promised collectors extra benefits like receiving staking-enabled tokens, merchandise, and giveaways. In November last year, he pleaded guilty to wire fraud. The NFT creator is among many who replicate popular NFT projects to enrich themselves.
The creators of Evolved Apes NFTs, for example, were in June charged for maliciously pocketing over $3 million after defrauding investors. Evolved Apes rode on the popularity of Yuga Labs’ family of Ape-based NFT collections.
With the court admitting that the value of Mutant Ape Planet NFTs was unclear, it’s to be seen whether law enforcement agencies will in the future calculate the actual value of NFTs before ordering scammers to return funds.
