Spain’s Guardia Civil police have arrested in Tenerife (Canary Islands) a fugitive wanted by US authorities over his alleged role in OmegaPro, a global investment platform accused of defrauding thousands of investors of more than $650 million.
The suspect was detained at a hotel on the island after being identified during routine checks carried out by officers searching for individuals subject to international arrest warrants. A special operation led by Guardia Civil officers from Guía de Isora in southern Tenerife culminated in the arrest.
Spanish authorities said the detainee was one of the key figures behind OmegaPro, although they did not publicly confirm whether he was the platform’s founder, Michael Shannon Sims, 48, or Juan Carlos Reynoso, 57, who allegedly oversaw operations across Latin America and parts of the United States.
The court has ordered his provisional imprisonment until his transfer to the requesting judicial body.
According to US prosecutors, OmegaPro was launched in January 2019 as a multi-level marketing investment scheme that promised extraordinary returns through supposedly sophisticated foreign exchange trading strategies. Investors were encouraged to purchase investment packages using cryptocurrency and were promised returns of up to 300% within 16 months.
The platform became known as ‘one of the biggest pyramid schemes in history’.
Authorities allege that OmegaPro attracted investors through an aggressive international marketing campaign that included endorsements and promotional appearances by well-known footballers. Among those linked to advertising campaigns for the company were Vinicius Jr, Ronaldinho, Iker Casillas, Carles Puyol and Luis Figo.
To bolster its credibility, OmegaPro staged lavish events around the world, including projecting its logo onto Dubai’s Burj Khalifa skyscraper. Promoters also showcased luxury holidays, expensive cars, designer watches and high-end lifestyles across social media platforms to attract new investors.
US investigators claim that more than $650 million in cryptocurrency was collected from investors and channelled through digital wallets controlled by OmegaPro executives before being redistributed through senior promoters, allegedly to conceal the origins of the funds.
The scheme reportedly unravelled in early 2023 when OmegaPro announced that it had suffered a cyberattack. Investors were told their funds would be transferred to another platform known as Broker Group and that their investments remained secure. However, victims were ultimately unable to recover their money.
Spain’s National Securities Market Commission (CNMV) had previously warned in 2020 that OmegaPro was not authorised to provide investment services in Spain.
The two men named in the US indictment face charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Each charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
The investigation is being led by the FBI alongside the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation division (IRS-CI) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), with assistance from authorities in several countries including Colombia, Australia, Canada, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
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#OperacionesGC | Detenido en Tenerife un criminal buscado por el @FBI por una estafa superior a 650 millones de dólares
📋El acusado, que tenía en vigor una orden internacional de detención, se encontraba alojado en un hotel de la isla
👇https://t.co/u6k29CCQf6 pic.twitter.com/RIPjmFiIR2— Guardia Civil (@guardiacivil) June 4, 2026
🔴 Detenido en Tenerife el líder de OmegaPro por una estafa piramidal millonaria promocionada por Vinicuis Jr, Iker Casillas y Carles Puyol https://t.co/fX4wCQjSEU pic.twitter.com/pGvZIdT6PK
— Canarias7 (@canarias7) June 4, 2026
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