In a surprising turn of events, Daniel Ianello, the man at the center of a lawsuit involving the now-defunct crypto project “The Phoenix,” is pushing back against serious accusations.
Investors have claimed Ianello pulled off an exit scam—allegedly taking control of the project in late 2022, draining its funds, and vanishing without a trace.
But Ianello is fighting to have the case thrown out of a Tennessee federal court, saying the state has no legal authority over him.
Ianello Challenges Tennessee Court’s Jurisdiction
In a recent court filing, Ianello argued that he doesn’t live in Tennessee and didn’t do business there, so the court has no right to hear the case.
He also strongly denies doing anything wrong, claiming the accusations misrepresent his involvement with the project.
According to his legal team, not only is the lawsuit filed in the wrong place, but the fraud claims themselves don’t hold up legally.
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What Does The Other Side Believe?
Investors say things rapidly went south when Daniel Ianello took over Phoenix Community Capital in October 2022.
After seizing control of the project’s assets, he quickly disabled its smart contracts, cutting off the main system that enabled users to profit from their investments, according to the complaint.
Many others believed Ianello had just taken the money and left. Due to the abrupt shutdown and lack of explanation, investors have concluded that it was a well-planned exit scam that masqueraded as a change in leadership, leaving the once-active cryptocurrency community stranded.
The Phoenix project had gained attention for promising passive income through crypto investments.
But after a sudden shutdown and lack of communication from its leadership, many investors were left feeling deceived. Now, before the court even considers the fraud claims, it must first decide whether it can hear the case at all.
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The Phoenix Promised Exclusive Investment Access to Everyday Crypto Users
The Phoenix project positioned itself as a special chance for regular cryptocurrency users to invest.
It stated that it was able to access high-level investment transactions that ordinary retail investors were unable to attain by pooling cash from its community.
The concept was straightforward: make wise investments and distribute the gains to all Phoenix token holders. The group also promised an internal incubation program, which is essentially their own platform for starting new enterprises.
The platform said that doing so would enable them to create and oversee promising businesses, which would increase their earnings even further.
Through a profit-sharing mechanism, those gains were then expected to be liberally distributed to the community.
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