PORTLAND, Ore. — A Ukrainian national accused of helping mastermind a sprawling $340 million cryptocurrency fraud scheme has been extradited from Thailand to the United States and appeared in federal court in Oregon this week, according to prosecutors.
Olena Oblamska, 42, who is also known by the name Lola Ferrari, is accused of playing a central role in Forsage, a purported cryptocurrency investment platform that U.S. authorities say was in fact a Ponzi and pyramid scheme targeting investors around the world. Prosecutors allege the operation used the language of blockchain innovation and decentralized finance to lure people into buying into a system that depended on a constant stream of new participants rather than legitimate business activity.
Oblamska was arrested in Thailand in February by the country’s Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau at a condominium in central Phuket, though authorities did not publicly identify her at the time. She was extradited to the United States earlier this month and made her initial appearance in federal court in Oregon on May 12, where she was arraigned, pleaded not guilty and was ordered detained pending trial.
The case is the latest development in a years-long international pursuit of the people accused of building and promoting Forsage, a platform prosecutors say collected money from investors across multiple countries after being launched in early 2020. Court documents describe a highly polished online campaign that portrayed the project as a low-risk, high-reward opportunity built on smart contracts operating on Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain and Tron.
Instead, investigators say, the project functioned like a classic Ponzi scheme. Participants reportedly purchased “slots” in the platform, and those payments were then routed to earlier investors. That arrangement allegedly created the illusion of returns while relying on fresh money flowing in from new recruits.
According to the indictment and related filings, Oblamska was one of four founders of Forsage and helped promote the scheme globally. Prosecutors say she presented herself online as the glamorous face of the operation, earning her the nickname “goddess” among followers. The U.S. Department of Justice says the platform falsely marketed itself as a legitimate decentralized investment opportunity, while in reality siphoning off vast sums from victims.
Dubai-based Russian national Vladimir Okhotnikov is alleged to have directed, managed and controlled Forsage’s operations. Two other co-founders, Mikhail Sergeev and Sergey Maslakov, are also facing charges in the case. Prosecutors say the alleged scheme generated roughly $340 million before collapsing or being disrupted by law enforcement scrutiny.
The criminal case in Oregon follows earlier civil action by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which in 2022 filed a complaint against 11 people tied to Forsage, including the four founders and several U.S.-based promoters associated with a group called the Crypto Crusaders. The SEC alleged at the time that Forsage was not a genuine investment platform but a pyramid-style marketing operation that enriched insiders while exposing later investors to steep losses.
Federal prosecutors later brought criminal charges in 2023, accusing the defendants of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Oblamska now faces that same charge. If convicted, she could face up to 20 years in federal prison, along with a fine of up to $250,000 and three years of supervised release.
At her hearing, Oblamska was ordered held pending a jury trial currently scheduled to begin in July. The court proceedings mark a significant moment for U.S. authorities, who have spent years tracing the alleged scheme through a maze of international entities, social media promotion and crypto wallet transactions.
Forsage’s rise coincided with a period of explosive enthusiasm for cryptocurrency and decentralized finance, when many retail investors were drawn to the promise of passive income and automated returns. Prosecutors say the defendants exploited that optimism by wrapping an old-fashioned fraud model in technological language and polished online branding.
The alleged structure, investigators say, rewarded early entrants and promoters while leaving later investors with little or no chance of profit. Such schemes have become a recurring concern for regulators, particularly in the fast-moving crypto sector, where new platforms can appear quickly, gain momentum online and obscure the identities of those behind them.
Authorities have not publicly detailed whether any assets linked to Oblamska have been seized or whether additional extraditions are expected in the case. But her arrival in the United States adds another key defendant to a prosecution that has already spanned continents and drawn attention from regulators, financial crime investigators and international law enforcement agencies.
For now, the case will proceed in federal court in Oregon, where prosecutors will seek to prove that Forsage was built not as a decentralized financial innovation, but as a fraudulent scheme designed to enrich its founders and insiders at the expense of thousands of investors.
This story will be updated as the case develops.