Canada’s self-styled ‘Crypto King’ Aiden Pleterski to defend himself at fraud trial

Aiden Pleterski, the 27-year-old Canadian who called himself the country’s “Crypto King,” is set to represent himself at a Toronto jury trial starting Monday after a judge refused to delay the case. Ontario Superior Court Justice Shaun Nakatsuru denied the adjournment request, leaving Pleterski without trial counsel for proceedings expected to last four weeks. The judge told him he would still receive a fair trial and said the court would take on an enhanced role, including raising objections on his behalf so only admissible evidence reaches the jury. Pleterski was charged in May 2024 with fraud over $5,000 and laundering the proceeds of crime following a joint investigation by Durham Regional Police and the Ontario Securities Commission. He denies the allegations, which have not been proven in court. The case follows earlier bankruptcy proceedings tied to roughly $40 million that investors said they had entrusted to him for crypto and foreign exchange trading, as well as a separate 2022 kidnapping in which abductors allegedly demanded $3 million.