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Keith Murphy, the NHGOP’s hand-picked candidate for state Senate, could end up explaining to a jury his business relationship with the defendants in the infamous Crypto 6 money laundering case.

Ian Freeman, the last of the Keene Crypto 6 defendants headed to trial, faces more than 30 federal felony counts for his Bitcoin business operation, which included running Bitcoin ATMs in various business locations. One of those ATMs was set up in the Manchester location of Murphy’s Taproom, a restaurant owned by the senate candidate.

Freeman’s attorney says he may call Murphy as a witness for the defense.

“All I was doing was providing a little wall space for the machine,” Murphy told NH Journal.

Murphy, a former GOP state representative, was picked by state GOP Chair Stephen Stepanek to replace state Rep. Michael Yakubovich (R-Hooksett) on the November ballot for the District 16 race. Yakubovich dropped out just days after the September 13 primary due to health issues.

“It’s not how you want to be in the Senate, but that’s how it goes,” Murphy said.

Federal law enforcement agents seized the Murphy’s Taproom ATM during the March 2021 raids of several homes and businesses connected to Freeman’s activities. Freeman is accused of operating a multimillion money laundering scheme that helped facilitate online scammers, according to court documents.

Murphy said he has not been in contact with any federal law enforcement agency since the machine was removed.

Freeman’s criminal defense attorney, Mark Sisti, said Murphy may be called as a witness, but it is too early to say definitively. “I don’t know yet,” Sisti said.

 Murphy said he has not been contacted about being a potential witness.

Freeman has maintained he did nothing wrong selling the cryptocurrency through his churches and is adamant that he wants his day in court. Contacted last week, Freeman confirmed he had one of his Shire Free Church Bitcoin ATMs in Murphy’s Taproom since March of 2016.

Murphy said he was never directly involved in exchanging cash for Bitcoin or vice versa. The ATM was in the restaurant as a courtesy for some of his customers, he said.

“We had customers who wanted to pay with Bitcoin,” Murphy said. “This provided a way for them to convert their own money to Bitcoin easily.”

Murphy said he does not remember the exact details of the arrangement he had with Freeman, but said he did not make any money from the machine.

“Occasionally, they would hand me a little money to pay for the electricity. But there was no set fee for the arrangement,” Murphy said.

Murphy’s recollection runs counter to Freeman’s understanding of his own business. According to Freeman, his ATMs brought in money for the host business through a percentage of the total transactions.

“The Shire Free Church is not a business, but we obviously had to compensate our venues for the space/power/internet they provided,” Freeman said. “All our venues received one percent of gross sales from their machine. Many crypto vending machine operators only pay a flat fee per month to their venues. Our venues were very pleased with our arrangement as they did very well on busy months.”

Freeman took in millions of dollars through his Bitcoin exchanges and Bitcoin ATMs, according to court records. He allegedly used personal bank accounts and accounts for made-up churches like the Shire Free Church, the Crypto Church of NH, the Church of the Invisible Hand, and the Reformed Satanic Church, to operate his Bitcoin empire. Part of the scheme Freeman ran helped cyber criminals swindle money from victims of lonely heart scams, according to prosecutors.

Business was good and the government alleges Freeman has secreted away millions of dollars in cash and cryptocurrency.

Four of the other Crypto 6 defendants, Renee Spinella, Andrew Spinella, Aria DiMezzo, and Nobody (also known as Rick Paul), have taken plea deals. The fifth suspect, Colleen Fordham, had her charges dropped earlier this year.

Federal prosecutors unsealed a new 32-count superseding indictment Tuesday against Free Keene’s Ian Freeman and Aria DiMezzo, the last remaining suspects in the “Crypto 6” money laundering Bitcoin criminal case.

The new indictments alleged Freeman and DiMezzo engaged in money laundering, wire fraud, conspiracy, and tax evasion. Freeman and DiMezzo are the only conspirators named in these new indictments, bought a week after three of the so-called Crypto 6 entered into plea agreements.

Renee Spinella, 25, her husband Andrew Spinella, 36, and Nobody, formerly known as Rich Paul, 54, all took plea deals that will bring them minimal prison time, and no jail time for Andrew Spinella. Prosecutors also dropped the indictment against Colleen Fordham, 62, leaving Freeman, 42, and DiMezzo, 35, as the only remaining suspects.

Renee Spinella is Freeman’s ex-girlfriend, and Nobody is a long-time member of Freeman’s Keene libertarian activist group.

Freeman’s attorney, Mark Sisti, could not be reached Tuesday evening. Richard Guerriero, DiMezzo’s attorney, said Tuesday night his client maintains her innocence.

Aria DiMezzo

“Aria DiMezzo maintains her position that she did nothing wrong and should not be prosecuted. She looks forward to a trial before a jury of New Hampshire citizens,” Guerriero said.

Freeman was asked Tuesday night about his former friends and associates possibly testifying against him, but he said he does not think that will happen.

“I don’t know what, if any, evidence there is that people are talking to the Feds or planning to testify against me. I’ve heard the opposite,” Freeman said in an email.

According to former First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Hampshire David Vicinanzo, the superseding indictments likely mean people are talking and providing new evidence to prosecutors.

“It most likely reflects that the people who pleaded are cooperating, have been interviewed, and have been deemed credible. Not only do the prosecutors have the testimony of the new witnesses, but probably additional documentary or other corroborative evidence derived from the insider testimony,” Vicinanzo said. “So, it looks like the Feds are loading up on the remaining defendants or defendants. It’s a common pattern in the federal system. We did it many times when I was there.”

If Vicinanzo is correct, and people close to Freeman are now witnesses for the prosecution, Freeman said he is not upset with them.

“Even if my friends are talking, no I don’t feel betrayed. The Feds are very scary and threatened my co-defendants with more charges if they didn’t take a plea deal. This is the typical strategy of the Feds, and it nearly always succeeds. It does not mean those who’ve pled guilty actually did anything wrong or harmed anyone. It simply means they were under duress and afraid of the unknown,” Freeman said. “I don’t blame them for doing what they felt they needed to do. Whatever it is they might say would only be the truth, that we were not scamming anyone, and no one was harmed. My religion includes the practice of forgiveness.”

According to the indictments, Freeman and DiMezzo brought in millions of dollars through their Bitcoin exchanges and Bitcoin ATMs. They also used personal bank accounts and accounts for made-up churches like the Shire Free Church, the Crypto Church of New Hampshire, the Church of the Invisible Hand, and the Reformed Satanic Church in order to conduct their bitcoin businesses. The pair allegedly lied to banks in opening their accounts and got others like Nobody and the Spinella’s to open accounts on their behalf, according to court records.

Part of the operation for Freeman was to help cybercriminals swindle money from lonely victims, according to the indictments.

“As part of the unlawful scheme, the defendant Ian Freeman knowingly processed and profited from numerous virtual currency transactions conducted on behalf of individuals who were defrauded by illegal scams, most commonly so-called ‘romance scams.’ By knowingly permitting defrauded individuals to exchange fiat currency for virtual currency including Bitcoin, Freeman and others facilitated the transfer of illicit proceeds to the executors of the illegal scams, while generating revenue for the virtual currency exchange business.,” the new indictments state.

Freeman is a long-time libertarian activist who first moved to New Hampshire as part of the Free State Project. The official Free State Project distanced itself from Freemen in 2014 when he repeatedly used his radio show to call for lowering the age of consent. However, Freeman has taken part in Free State events since his 2014 ouster, such as the annual libertarian PorcFest.

The indictment states federal officials plan to seize all of Freeman’s Bitcoins, as well as $180,000 in cash and other currencies taken during the March 2021 raids at his home in Keene.

CONCORD — Andrew Spinella is skipping prison as part of the plea agreement he entered in the Keene Crypto 6 money laundering case.

Spinella, 36, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud on Tuesday. Two other federal conspiracy charges are being dropped as part of the deal.

While the agreement does not explicitly require Spinella to testify against alleged ringleader Ian Freeman, the charge itself implicates Freeman in a scheme to defraud banks.

Spinella pleaded guilty to a wire fraud count stating he created bank accounts in his own name, and then gave control of these accounts over to Freeman in order to allow Freeman to use the accounts to sell Bitcoin. Assistant United States Attorney Georgiana MacDonald told Judge Joseph Laplante the government has text messages between Andrew Spinella and his wife, Renee Spinella, detailing the scheme.

MacDonald said Renee Spinella explained to her husband in the texts similar bank accounts she opened for Freeman had been closed because of banking laws.

Laplante asked Andrew Spinella point-blank if he was guilty during Tuesday’s hearing.

“I feel with everything going on, if I were to take it to trial, it would make it far worse,” he told the judge.

Laplante pressed Spinella on his guilt, saying he could not accept a guilty plea if Spinella did think he was guilty of the crime charged.

“I don’t mean guilty in some cosmic sense,” Laplante said.

Spinella continued that it would be worse for him if he took the case to trial and if he was tried with the five other defendants. Laplante again asked if he was guilty.

“There’s too much evidence that says that I am,” Spinella said.

Renee Spinella, 25, was also scheduled to enter into a plea agreement, but she did not appear in court Tuesday. She was reportedly feeling unwell and her hearing is now set for Thursday. Renee Spinella is also currently charged with conspiracy along with Freeman, her ex-boyfriend. Freeman, 42, Colleen Fordham, 62, of Alstead, Nobody (formerly Richard Paul), 54, of Keene, and Aria DiMezzo, 36, of Keene, are all charged with conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business.

Observing Tuesday’s hearing were Freeman’s attorney, Mark Sisti, and DiMezzo’s attorney, Richard Guerriero.

Freeman is a long-time libertarian activist who first moved to New Hampshire as part of the Free State Project. That organization distanced itself from Freemen in 2014 when he repeatedly used his radio show to call for lowering the age of consent.

In 2015, federal agents raided Freeman’s Keene home and seized dozens of computers and other devices as part of an investigation into the alleged possession of child sex abuse images. No charges were ever brought in the case. Freeman filed a lawsuit against the FBI agent who obtained the search warrant last week.

Nobody (Richard Paul) did jail time for a drug conviction in 2014 and has run for both mayor of Keene and governor of New Hampshire. He was held the longest in jail after the money laundering arrest last year, due in part to his threats against law enforcement.

DiMezzo, who describes herself as a trans satanic anarchist, ran unsuccessfully for Cheshire County sheriff as a Republican in 2020.

Freeman and DiMezzo both started churches that the indictments claim they used as part of the $10 million money-laundering scheme. According to court records, since 2016, the defendants have operated a business that enabled criminal customers to exchange over $10 million in fiat currency for virtual currency, charging a fee for their service. They operated their virtual currency exchange business using websites, as well as operating virtual currency ATM machines in New Hampshire.

Prosecutors claim Freeman knew he was laundering ill-gotten money from criminals. The indictment alleges the defendants knowingly operated the virtual currency exchange business in violation of federal anti-money laundering laws and regulations. Additionally, the indictment alleges some defendants opened bank accounts, some in the names of purported religious entities, like DiMezzo’s Satanic Temple.

Agents took dozens of guns and close to $200,000 in cash out of Freeman’s Keene homes during the March 2021 raid when he and the others were arrested. He was estimated to have more than $1.6 million in cryptocurrency at his disposal that authorities know about, according to court records.

Two of the six people charged with laundering money using Bitcoin sales and Granite Stater Ian Freeman’s libertarian churches are taking plea deals, leaving their alleged co-conspirators legally exposed.

Renee Spinella, 25, and her husband Andrew Spinella, 37, both from Derry, filed notices this week in United States District Court in Concord that they plan to change their current not guilty pleas to guilty.

The Spinellas were arrested last year by federal law enforcement agents who were targeting Freeman, 42, and his libertarian activist cohorts based in Keene. Freeman is alleged to have operated a multi-million-dollar money-laundering scheme that used Bitcoin transactions and phony donations to the various churches he and others started to launder money for criminals.

Freeman, the Spinellas, Colleen Fordham, 62, of Alstead, Nobody (formerly Richard Paul), 54, of Keene, and Aria DiMezzo, 36, of Keene, are all charged with conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transmitting business. Freeman and the Spinellas are also charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and several other charges.

If the Spinellas are cooperating with authorities, as is typical for such plea agreements, that could spell trouble for Freeman and the other defendants. David Vicinanzo, a former first assistant U.S. Attorney for New Hampshire, said plea deals in conspiracy cases are bad news for the remaining defendants.

“If they are charged together in a common conspiracy, the guilty pleas of some defendants suggest that those defendants will be called as witnesses against the remaining defendants. The ‘code of silence’ may be crumbling, as the government strengthens its case with the information and testimony of insiders who know what happened because they participated,” he said.

Rene Spinella used to be Freeman’s girlfriend and seemingly remained friendly with him after they went their separate ways. The pair even shared ownership of a dog after the split.

While Freeman has denied criminal wrongdoing, the testimony of his former girlfriend and her current husband could prove troubling for his defense.

Freeman is a long-time libertarian activist who first moved to New Hampshire as part of the Free State Project. The official Free State Project distanced itself from Freemen in 2014 when he repeatedly used his radio show to call for lowering the age of consent for sexual activity.

In 2015, federal agents raided Freeman’s Keene home and seized dozens of computers and other devices as part of an investigation into the alleged possession of child sex abuse images. No charges were ever brought in the case. Freeman filed a lawsuit last week against the FBI agent who obtained the search warrant.

The defendant named Nobody did jail time for a drug conviction in 2014 and has run for mayor of Keene and governor. He was held the longest in jail after the money laundering arrest last year, due in part to his threats against law enforcement.

DiMezzo, who describes herself as a trans satanic anarchist, ran for Cheshire County sheriff as a Republican in 2020.

Freeman and DiMezzo both started churches that the indictments claim they used as part of the money-laundering scheme. According to the court records, since 2016, the defendants have operated a multi-million business that enabled criminal customers to exchange over ten million dollars in fiat currency for virtual currency, charging a fee for their service. They operated their virtual currency exchange business using websites, as well as operating virtual currency ATMs in New Hampshire.

Prosecutors have said Freeman knew he was laundering ill-gotten money from criminals. The indictment alleges that the defendants knowingly operated the virtual currency exchange business in violation of federal anti-money laundering laws and regulations. Additionally, the indictment alleges that some defendants opened bank accounts in the names of purported religious entities, like DiMezzo’s Satanic Temple.

Agents took dozens of guns and close to $200,000 in cash out of Freeman’s Keene homes during the March 2021 raid. He was estimated to have more than $1.6 million in cryptocurrency at his disposal, according to court records.

Change of plea hearings for the Spinellas are set for Tuesday in Concord.

Libertarian activist and leader of the Free Keene movement, Ian Freeman, wants the FBI to return computers and hard drives taken when agents raided his Keene home as part of a child sex abuse images investigation.

Freeman was never charged in the 2016 investigation. Freeman insists he has been targeted by federal agents for years because of his political beliefs and now wants his stuff back.

“It’s just the Shire Free Church attempting to get back what is ours from the 2016 raid, as it has been six years and no charges have been filed,” Freeman said Saturday.

Freeman and the Shire Free Church which he runs out of his Keene home are part of an ongoing criminal money laundering case brought against Freeman and five other associates. Any connection between the 2016 raid and last year’s arrests has not been made public.

“Whether that raid was simply an excuse to take our computers and go through them on the pretext of searching for illegal pornography or not is up to the observer to decide.  The facts are clear – obviously, they haven’t found any evidence of any criminal activity or someone would have been charged by now,” Freeman said.

Freeman is suing the agent who obtained the 2016 warrant, Scott Bailey, in order to get his electronics returned. The lawsuit filed last week in the United States District Court in Concord, claims the government obtained the search warrant improperly and that there was no evidence of any crime.

The lawsuit seeks the return of all his devices taken in the 2016 raid, as well as payment to cover the cost of the legal action.

In 2015, agents took his computers, hard drive, and other devices as part of the child sex abuse image investigation that has, so far, not produced an indictment or criminal charge, or apparently turned up any evidence. Soon after that raid, law enforcement agents began asking Freeman’s friends about his crypto businesses, he said.

Agents raided his home again in March of last year as part of the money-laundering investigation. This time Freeman, along with five other people connected to him, were charged with federal felonies.

Freeman (formerly Ian Bernard), 41, of Keene, Colleen Fordham, 61, of Alstead, Renee Spinella, 24, of Derry, Andrew Spinella, 36, of Derry, Nobody (formerly Richard Paul), 53, of Keene, and Aria DiMezzo, 35, of Keene were all taken into custody and charged.

Nobody, AKA Rich Paul, is another example of federal harassment, according to Freeman. During the 2020 interview, he said Nobody has been arrested in 2014 on drug charges but offered a deal if he would talk. Nobody, a pro-marijuana activist who ran for governor, declined the deal and served about a year in jail.

According to court records, since 2016, the defendants have operated a multi-million business that enabled criminal customers to exchange over 10 million dollars in fiat currency for virtual currency, charging a fee for their service. They operated their virtual currency exchange business using websites, as well as operating virtual currency ATM machines in New Hampshire.

Prosecutors have said Freeman knew he was laundering ill-gotten money from criminals. The indictment alleges the defendants knowingly operated the virtual currency exchange business in violation of federal anti-money laundering laws and regulations. Additionally, the indictment alleges some defendants opened bank accounts in the names of purported religious entities, like DiMezzo’s Satanic Temple.

Agents took dozens of guns and close to $200,000 in cash out of Freeman’s Keene homes during the March 2021 raid. He is estimated to have more than one million dollars in cryptocurrency at his disposal, according to court records.

The money laundering case has yet to go to trial, though Freeman insists he is not guilty of any crimes.

Cryptocurrencies have been part of criminal cases in New Hampshire, and regulatory concerns as well. Last year, for example, Shawn Helstein pleaded guilty to money laundering after he was caught trying to convert thousands of dollars in proceeds from the sale of methamphetamine into Bitcoin, according to court records.

United States Attorney John Farley recently told NHJournal drug dealers in New Hampshire have been using crypto to buy and sell drugs on the dark web.

“Almost anyone who wants to find a connection can find a connection,” Farley said. “It’s everywhere.”

If crypto has a legitimate future in the New Hampshire economy, it will need to submit to some form of regulation, critics say. BlockFi Trust withdrew its application to open a branch in New Hampshire after deciding the Granite State’s banking regulations were too unclear for the crypto banking firm.

BlockFi is already in trouble with New Jersey regulators over its interest-bearing accounts. New Jersey’s Bureau of Securities issued a cease and desist order against the company, stating BlockFi’s accounts were not registered with that office or exempt from registration. BlockFi offers accounts with yields from 0.25 percent to 7.5 percent, and New Jersey claims the accounts violate its state regulations.

Freeman was an early Free State activist, moving to New Hampshire as part of the Libertarian movement to take over state politics. He had a falling out with the Free State Project in 2014 after he made statements on his radio program in favor of lowering the age of consent laws. The Free State Project officially distanced itself from Freeman at that time.