BitBoy has court tomorrow. Probably not. “BitBoy Crypto” YouTuber Ben Armstrong is expected in court on Thursday to account for his alleged bad behavior. Armstrong is on a long-awaited BitBoy crypto cruise to the Bahamas. Despite a judge’s order, he plans to skip the hearing to address his alleged harassment of Adam Moskowitz, the lawyer who sued him.
Armstrong texted The Block Wednesday that he would not attend. After FTX went under last year, the $1 billion class action complaint is the latest crypto drama in federal court.
Armstrong and other crypto celebrities face a class action lawsuit for marketing FTX’s unregistered securities. FTX customer Edwin Garrison, who is also suing the company’s famous marketers including Shaquille O’neal and Tom Brady, filed the action.
Armstrong, who delivers his 1.45 million YouTube subscribers “the latest crypto news, project reviews, and cryptocurrency trading advice,” says the lawsuit doesn’t apply to him. Armstrong denies promoting FTX. Moskowitz’s firm’s court documents show he complimented FTX and its utility token. Armstrong called Moskowitz a clout-chasing whore.
The lawsuit targets YouTubers Kevin Paffrath, Graham Stephan, Andrei Jikh, and others. The suit says influencers “played a major role” in the FTX bankruptcy. A FTT token run destroyed the $32 billion corporation. “With the rise of the internet and social media, a new multi-billion dollar cottage industry of ‘influencers’ has been created,” court records said. “FTX could not have arisen to such great heights without the massive impact of these influencers, who hyped the deceptive FTX platform for undisclosed payments ranging from tens of thousands to multimillion dollar bribes.”
The Moskowitz Law Firm has sued FTX promoters, bankrupt crypto lender Voyager Digital, and Binance, the leading crypto exchange. FTX sued Armstrong and other influencers in the Southern District of Florida. “There’s a long list of influencers that promoted this,” Moskowitz told Frank Chaparro on The Scoop this week. I can’t pursue 1,000 just now. You target the biggest ones.”Moskowitz declined comment.
Armstrong denies endorsing FTX. Armstrong posted dozens of YouTube videos titled “BIGGEST Scam in Crypto History (FTX Destroyed Peoples Lives)” and “FTX Insiders Rigging Crypto (BIGGEST Corruption Scandal Ever)” after FTX collapsed.
Lawyers found videos of Armstrong addressing FTT, the FTX token, and saying “everything” former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried “touches turns to gold.” Bankman-Fried awaits an October trial after pleading not guilty.
“It is well-documented that Armstrong has been intricately involved in many nefarious activities,” a court brief claimed. “Posting a plethora of materials regarding specifically FTX, FTT and Sam Bankman-Fried (much of which he has since altered or deleted, though many are still publicly available), including his purported half million dollar stake in FTT.”
Armstrong vows to “totally blow up his entire case” against Moskowitz.
He’s trying to sue me over the world’s biggest fraud? That’s libel. “There’s no evidence to tie me to it,” Armstrong replied via phone. Armstrong was ordered to appear in court on Thursday to explain his profanity-laced emails and social media statements to Moskowitz.
“It could be a bit of a circus,” said Josh Garcia, a partner at Ketsal, noting that lawyers for other defendants have been invited to attend the court event. Garcia is uninvolved.
Lawyers believe Armstrong might be put in contempt of court or face other penalties for not appearing. Jason Rindenau, Armstrong’s representative, declined comment.
Armstrong may receive a temporary restraining order for his alleged behavior toward Moskowitz. Armstrong’s social media and court filings describe his treatment of Moskowitz.
Armstrong tweeted, “Daily reminder you are a p***y,” from a recent email to Moskowitz.
“I won’t take your license. Bitch, I promise. “Thanks, Ben Armstrong,” he tweeted. Armstrong has tweeted photographs of Moskowitz, calling him “shorter than the average American male” and “an ambulance chasing douche bag.”
Moskowitz says the abuse was so bad he contacted the FBI and local police to protect his family. According to court papers, the Moskowitz Law Firm got two dozen lawsuit-related calls in hours. Armstrong denies calling Moskowitz. I own what I do. Armstrong added, “I don’t hide my mistakes.”
