Josh Garza posted an alleged chat log to the Hashtalk forum last night that he believed would vindicate him in a dispute with Phil Vadala. What it revealed was far more damaging. The May 1 exchange sh
Josh Garza posted an alleged chat log to the Hashtalk forum last night that he believed would vindicate him in a dispute with Phil Vadala. What it revealed was far more damaging. The May 1 exchange shows Garza owes money to organized crime figures from Russia and the Middle East, and that he warned Vadala of serious consequences if the situation wasn't resolved.
The dispute centers on 15 Paycoin Prime Controllers—staking wallets that generate 100% interest on coins you deposit. Only a few dozen exist in the broader Paycoin ecosystem. Elite community members fight for control of them. Vadala controls some that Garza claims belonged to investors he owed money to.
In the chat, Garza tells Vadala that these investors "lost a lot of people's money," and that he'd already given them Vadala's personal information. He then shares a driver's license number and other identifying details. The message concludes: "keep your family close bud. that's all I got to say."
Garza says he only provided the investors with Vadala's information because they claimed they were pursuing legal action. That explanation doesn't account for why he included a veiled threat after sharing the details, or why he left the personal information in the conversation when posting it to the forum. A closer read of the exchange shows Garza continued feeding information to the alleged crime figures even after their violent intentions became clear.
The Prime Controller ownership question is almost trivial compared to what Garza revealed about himself. Paycoin can't function as a viable coin while these Prime Controllers exist at 100% interest rates. Paycoin's reputation took damage that may be irreversible. None of that changes what matters here: Garza either has actual ties to organized crime and ran up debts with them, or he's inventing a mafia threat to extort a former associate.
Garza later acknowledged that he controlled the forum account that posted the chat. The exchange also revealed he'd spent time in Dubai, something he'd denied to community members before. He then appeared in a Google Hangouts call claiming to be in the United States but refused to provide any verification of his location. He also disputed claims that he'd been dumping XPY coins, while denying he had the technical capability to do so in a hidden manner.
We reached out to Garza for comment through email, the public "Voice of Paycoin" Hangout, and the forum itself. He didn't respond. We also contacted Vadala to verify the conversation and gather his account of events. As of now, neither has provided substantive answers.
The chat could be fabricated or heavily edited. The organized crime investors may not exist. Vadala may have legitimate claims to the Prime Controllers, or he may not. These are unknowns we may never resolve. Garza posted this believing it would make him look like the wronged party worthy of support. Instead it raised a question he will have to answer when the authorities come.
Just before publication, Vadala posted three Paycoin addresses on the forum that he claims were used to sweep Prime Controllers onto Cryptsy exchange. We haven't verified this, and we're still investigating. Readers can review the blockchain data themselves. Each address received between 44,000 and 353,000 XPY. All three are now empty.
Garza finally responded to our email. He said he would provide comment tomorrow but declined today, despite the fact that his own posts started this situation. We'll publish his response if he provides one.
A second update: Garza did respond, but only to deny Vadala's accusations about the Prime Controller scraping addresses. He offered no evidence or detailed explanation. "They are not accurate," he wrote. That was his complete response. We'll continue updating as developments emerge.
