On May 14, a lawsuit was filed in Illinois against Jonathan Mills, the founder of the Hashling NFT project. Mills is accused of embezzling millions of dollars. Prosecutors say he embezzled more than $3 million from both the NFT project and a Bitcoin mining company, originally known as Proof of Work Labs and now rebranded as Satoshi Labs.
The investors allege that Mills lied to them about the transfer of assets from Hashling to his holding company, Satoshi Labs LLC, which he controlled. CEO They are demanding the return of their investments and stress that they have not received any of the promised returns.
The justice department accuses Mills of fraud and breach of fiduciary duty. The complaint alleges that he failed to generate any returns on his $1,46 million investment, which he raised through NFT drops on the Solana and Bitcoin blockchains. After the drops were completed, he avoided contact with investors.
Furthermore, the plaintiffs refer to a flawed shareholder structure. Mills allegedly drew up an agreement that legitimized the transfer of project assets to his own company, but this agreement lacked sufficient safeguards. He allegedly allocated 67% of the share capital to himself, while other investors only received 2%. This is in stark contrast to earlier agreements.
The Hashling project began as an idea Mills discussed with co-plaintiff Dustin Steerman, with whom he had previously worked. Despite Mills’ initial claims of lack of experience and capital, he and Steerman agreed to co-create the project and brought on other investors to develop the NFT art and its marketing campaign.
Indeed, Mills even encouraged his girlfriend to invest in the project. Now the investors are not only demanding their investment back, but also full compensation and the return of lost assets that they say were the victims of Mills' abuse.
What are the main allegations against Jonathan Mills?
Mills is accused of embezzling more than $3 million from the Hashling NFT project and Satoshi Labs, and breaching his fiduciary duty.
What are the investors demanding in this lawsuit?
The investors are demanding return of their investments and full legal compensation, including restitution of lost assets.
How did the Hashling project actually come into being?
The project began as a collaboration between Mills and Dustin Steerman, who tapped other investors to develop NFT art and launch a marketing campaign.