Homero Joshua Garza
Founder of GAW Miners and ZenMiner, which sold 'hashlets' and the PayCoin token. He pleaded guilty to wire fraud over a ~$9.18M virtual-currency Ponzi scheme and was sentenced in 2018 to 21 months in prison and over $9M in restitution.
Also known as: Josh Garza, Homero Garza
Bio
Homero Joshua Garza founded GAW Miners and ZenMiner. Beginning in 2014 the companies sold "hashlets" — purported shares of cryptocurrency mining profits — and later the PayCoin (XPY) token, claiming a $100 million reserve would keep its price above $20. [1][2]
Legal outcome
According to the SEC, GAW/ZenMiner lacked the capacity to mine at the scale sold, so most customers paid for computing power that never existed and "returns" came from new investor money. Garza pleaded guilty to wire fraud in 2017 and, on September 13, 2018, was sentenced to 21 months in prison and ordered to pay $9,182,000 in restitution. [1][2]
Bracketed numbers refer to the numbered sources listed below.
Linked scams & cases
Sources (2)
- Homero Joshua Garza, GAW Miners, LLC, and ZenMiner, LLC (litigation release) — U.S. SEC
- Connecticut Bitcoin Mining Fraudster Sentenced to 21 Months — Kahn Tax Law (DOJ release summary)
See also
- Bitcoin Latinum (LTNM)TokensA ~$16M token offering (SAFTs for 'Bitcoin Latinum' / LTNM) that the SEC charged in 2026 as fraud: founder Donald Basile falsely called LTNM 'the world's first insured digital asset' backed by an 'existing trust,' neither of which existed, and diverted investor funds for personal use (including a $160,000 horse).
- Loci (LOCIcoin)TokensA 2017–2018 ICO for 'LOCIcoin' tied to the InnVenn IP-search platform. The SEC charged Loci and CEO John Wise with fraud for raising $7.6M on false claims about revenue, headcount, and user base; Wise also misused investor funds. Settled with a $7.6M penalty and an officer/director bar.
- Blockchain Terminal (BCT)Tokens
This page was last updated on Jun 8, 2026. View revision history.