Last week, federal agents arrested former Lottery.com executive Vadim Komissarov, charging him with artificially inflating revenue to deceive investors.
The 53-year-old resident of New York was the CEO of Trident Acquisitions Corp (TDAC), a special purpose acquisition company that merged with Lottery.com in 2021 to bring the ticket sales platform to the public.
The authorities claim that Komissarov distorted financial information to facilitate the merger and subsequently provided false statements regarding the company's condition. Prosecutors allege he also orchestrated a fraudulent $9 million deal under the alias “Vlad.”
‘Facade of Achievement’
In mid-2022, Komissarov sold nearly 300K Lottery.com shares for over $600K shortly before the company informed investors about finding accounting irregularities, according to the indictment.
“Vadim Komissarov allegedly tried to secure a winning ticket by developing an elaborate scheme comprised of inflated profits, falsified transactions, and perjurious statements to sell company shares,” said FBI Assistant Director in Charge James E. Dennehy in a statement.
"Komissarov allegedly abused his authority as the company’s CEO to conjure a facade of success and interfere with an investigation into his suspected misconduct,” Dennehy added.
The truth was that Lottery.com encountered difficulties after becoming public, dealing with SEC inquiries, investor lawsuits, and internal management issues.
In a filing to the SEC on July 15, 2022, Lottery.com acknowledged it had inflated its available unrestricted cash balance by around $30 million, noting that it inaccurately recognized revenue of that same figure in the previous fiscal year.
Synchronizing Timepieces
Following the receipt of a subpoena from the SEC for documents and testimony related to its investigation, Komissarov contacted two executives from Lottery.com to “sync” his “clock” with theirs.
"Guys, you do understand, you say that I was involved with this [sham $9 million] transaction … if Trident and me specifically knew about it, then I am in deep, deep, deep, deep water,” Komissarov said, according to the indictment. “So, if you come out and say that I was involved, then I am in deep shit.”
Komissarov also tried to hinder the SEC's inquiry. On November 20, 2024, he offered sworn statements to the SEC, providing inaccurate and deceptive responses regarding his participation in the transaction.
He faces charges for one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud, for making false and misleading statements in proxy statements, and for submitting false filings to the SEC; one count of securities fraud; five counts of making false and misleading statements in proxy statements; one count of obstruction of justice; and one count of perjury.
He could receive up to 20 years in prison if found guilty.
