According to a report published by the 47News and Times of Moscow, Russian law enforcement authorities have detained Joshua Cartu, a prominent figure in the notorious Cartu Brothers‘ binary options fraud scheme. Cartu, a 45-year-old Israeli-Canadian entrepreneur and racecar driver, was apprehended at St. Petersburg’s Pulkovo International Airport by the Interior Ministry’s Interpol bureau. The Cartu Brothers operated the GreyMountain Management (GMM) Binary Options fraud scheme.
According to the Russian news site 78, Carto is a suspect in a $60 million fraud case. Joshua Cartu’s detention marks a significant development in the ongoing investigations into the Cartu Brothers—David Cartu, Jonathan Cartu, and Joshua Cartu—who orchestrated a vast binary options fraud network centered around their Irish company, GreyMountain Management (GMM). In September 2020, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) had charged the Cartu brothers, alongside their business partners and associated companies, with defrauding investors of $204 million through illegal online trading schemes between 2013 and 2018.
FinTelegram has extensively reported on the Cartu Brothers‘ fraudulent activities, which exploited vulnerable investors through promises of high returns via binary options trading. This financial scheme, which spanned multiple jurisdictions, led to significant regulatory actions. Notably, in March 2024, a Texas court found Jonathan Cartu and his associates, including Leeav Peretz, Nati Peretz, and Blue Moon Investments Inc., liable for their role in the fraud. The court ordered them to pay $204 million in civil monetary penalties and restitution.
In addition to the U.S. legal actions, the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) in Canada accused the Cartu brothers in 2020 of pocketing $233 million through global binary options-related schemes. In May 2021, OSC settled with David Cartu, who agreed to a seven-year ban and a CAD 300,000 penalty. In July 2022, Ontario’s Capital Markets Tribunal ordered Jonathan Cartu and Joshua Cartu to pay CAD 3.3 million.
Their fraudulent activities allegedly targeted a wide range of victims, including retirees, disabled veterans, struggling parents, and early-career millennials.
Joshua Cartu, born on March 11, 1979, was known for flaunting his opulent lifestyle on social media and allegedly has been living in Russia for the past three years. He owned a collection of Ferraris and was a regular participant in races and rallies for affluent supercar owners.
According to the Russian news platform 78, the Moscow district issued a decree on the extension of the period of detention for 72 hours. The next court meeting will be held on August 24.
If confirmation is received, Russian authorities will seek a court order to formally arrest him. However, due to the absence of an extradition treaty between Russia and the U.S., the process could face significant legal challenges.
FinTelegram will continue to monitor this developing story as further details emerge regarding Joshua Cartu’s potential extradition and the broader implications for the Cartu brothers’ fraudulent empire.
