Former Pump.enjoyable Worker Pleads Responsible, Awaits Sentencing for $2 Million Solana Theft

While Dunn drained an estimated $2 million from the platform, the court docket heard final yr that the consequential losses doubtlessly ran as excessive as £10 million, or $12.8 million. How this determine was decided was not mentioned on the time.

Decrypt has since found that this determine accounts for capital spent to protect the fame of Pump.enjoyable, in addition to misplaced income because of the platform halting buying and selling for roughly 9 hours and quickly chopping buying and selling charges as a goodwill gesture to impacted customers—totaling roughly $10 million.

On high of this, Dunn despatched the entire stolen funds to random pockets addresses, which suggests he was unable to instantly return what was taken, nor may Pump.enjoyable get better it. In doing this, he amassed a cult-like following that paraded him because the Robin Hood of crypto.

The prosecution may pursue Dunn to pay again the funds misplaced on account of the crime by way of a Proceeds of Crime Act or POCA utility, UK solicitor at regulation agency Gunnercooke, Neil Williams, advised Decrypt.

However, some mitigating circumstances might cut back Dunn’s sentencing.

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One issue is his analysis of schizoaffective bipolar dysfunction, panic dysfunction, and ADHD. At the time of the crime, the developer hadn’t been taking any medicine for 3 months—and when arrested, it was decided that he was unfit to face a police interview. Dunn was then hospitalized for 2 weeks beneath Section 136 of the Mental Health Act, to enhance his psychological well being.

Dunn additionally has a historical past of substance abuse, for which he was frequently attending restoration conferences to battle.

In final yr’s listening to, the place Dunn pleaded responsible, the decide mentioned that bettering his psychological well being might act as a mitigating circumstance. Following the listening to, when requested by Decrypt if he thought the crime was a results of a psychological episode, Dunn replied, “My whole life has been a mental episode, so it’s hard to tell.”

Since Dunn’s explosive departure from the corporate in May 2024, Pump.enjoyable has erupted into one of many greatest initiatives in crypto.

At the time of the assault, the token launchpad was widespread however nonetheless in its infancy, with a lifetime income of $43.9 million. Its income has since skyrocketed to $791 million, in line with Dune data, because it grew to become a cultural hub for tokenizing memes and viral traits.

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Pump.enjoyable has spawned the likes of Fartcoin, Moo Deng, and Chill Guy, in addition to numerous controversial tokens. More not too long ago, it has began to foster a group of streamers, because the platform says it’s trying to topple business giants like TikTok and Twitch.

It has additionally launched its personal token, which has surged 27% over the previous two weeks to a $1.27 billion market capitalization—though it stays down 47% from its all-time excessive. Still, in line with CoinGecko, PUMP is the 99th largest cryptocurrency on the planet.

Meanwhile, Dunn sits in his cell, awaiting a date to be sentenced.