Ice Poseidon - real name Paul Denino - a streamer and internet personality has apparently scammed fans out of half a million dollars in a pump and dump crypto scheme. He showed no remorse for the alleged theft when confronted by YouTuber Coffeezilla. Denino's supposed scam saw him raise the value of a new cryptocurrency, CXcoin, by getting fans to invest. He allegedly promised doubters and sceptics that this was a long-term project, but he sold all his currency which caused the remainder held by fans and investors to plummet in value. This is known as a pump and dump scheme.A recent video by Coffeezilla shares the Youtuber's findings into CXcoin. According to Coffeezilla, Denino personally made off with over $300,000, while $200,000 was used to pay developers.
In a call between the two, Denino appears remorseless, stating, "Part of the responsibility is on them [the fans] as well, for putting too much emotion into it." Streamers and internet personalities can obviously leverage their relationship with their fans, just as any celebrity can, so it feels disingenuous to then criticise fans for their engagement with the parasocial dynamic.
Denino said on the call, "Sometimes you have to look out for yourself." Coffeezilla said he could return the money if he wanted to, to which Denino replied, "If you want the answer, yeah I could give the money back, it is within my power, but I am going to look out for myself and not do that."
Coffeezilla shared a tweet that claimed Denino would be giving back $155,000 after he realised Coffeezilla would be publishing a story about the events, but apparently, only $40,000 has been returned so far.
Coffeezilla also exposed the former FaZe clan member Frazier Khattri's crypto scam back in July 2021. The incident led to three members getting suspended, and Khattri getting removed from the organisation. He has since issued an apology and claimed he wants to return the stolen money, but not before he first threatened to sue Coffeezilla over the video expose.