FORT WORTH, TEXAS >> A federal jury in Texas convicted a Whittier man of wire fraud charges on Wednesday for his role in a scheme to defraud a video game manufacturer of more than $16 million of digital currency for the popular soccer video game, FIFA Football, authorities said.
Anthony Clark, 24, was found guilty in U.S. District Court in Fort Worth, Texas, of wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud, U.S. Attorney’s Office spokeswoman Kathy Colvin said in a written statement.
“He faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in federal prison, a $250,000 fine and restitution,” she said. Sentencing is scheduled to take place Feb. 27.
Three co-defendants in the case — a 24-year-old New Jersey man, a 24-year-old Texas man and a 24-year-old Virginia man — have already entered guilty pleas and are also awaiting sentencing, officials said.
The alleged scam revolves around “FIFA Coins,” a digital currency used within the popular Electronic Arts video game, FIFA Football, prosecutors explained. Gamers can use the coins, which are generally earned through gameplay, to make purchases in the game.
But a secondary market has also emerged, in which players sell the FIFA coins to each other for cold, hard cash.
“Clark and his co-conspirators circumvented multiple security mechanisms created by EA in order to fraudulently obtain FIFA coins worth over $16 million,” Colvin said.
“Specifically, Clark and his co-conspirators created software that fraudulently logged thousands of FIFA Football matches within a matter of seconds, and as a result, EA computers credited Clark and his co-conspirators with improperly earned FIFA coins,” she said. “Clark and his co-conspirators subsequently exchanged their FIFA coins on the secondary market for over $16 million.”