Garza gets 21-month sentence for bitcoin scheme

HARTFORD, CONN. — Despite pleas for leniency, a federal judge sentenced the founder of a Brattleboro, Vt., internet company to 21 months in prison.

"Mr. Garza engaged in serious misconduct that hurt a lot of people in ways that are profound and for many, irreparable, and because of the extraordinary victim impact, a sentence of probation is out of the question," said Judge Robert N. Chatigny.

In July 2017, Garza pleaded guilty to wire fraud "related to his role in his companies' purported generation and sale of virtual currency," stated a press release from the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Connecticut. As part of the plea deal, Garza agreed not to appeal any sentence levied by the court.

Garza founded the now-defunct Optima Computers in Brattleboro in 2002. Once Optima went out of business, Garza and his then-business mentor, Stuart Fraser, founded Great Auk Wireless High Speed Internet, also in Brattleboro. Great Auk was eventually bought out and no longer exists. In 2014, Garza and Fraser also founded GAW Miners and ZenMiner, bitcoin mining companies.

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