The appeal case stemming from the criminal proceedings against binary options fraudster Lee Elbaz will be delayed further, as indicated by the latest filings at the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. This time, the delay is due not to a motion by Elbaz, the former CEO of Israel-based Yukom Communications, but to a motion by the Department of Justice (DOJ).

After receiving three extensions totalling 111 days, defendant-appellant Lee Elbaz filed her opening 52-page brief on December 18, 2020. Without extension, the government’s answering brief was due on January 8, 2021.

On January 3, 2021, however, the government requested a 30-day extension to file its answering brief.

The DOJ argued that the record in this case is voluminous. Elbaz was convicted at trial of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and substantive wire fraud counts. The appellate record, which includes a number of hearings into addition to the trial transcripts, consists of over 11,600 pages. Also, the government attorney assigned to handle this appeal was not trial counsel, and therefore needs the additional time to become familiar with this large record.

Finally, the government attorney assigned to this case has not been able to focus exclusively on the Elbaz case because of other obligations.

On January 4, 2021, the Court granted the DOJ’s motion. As a result, the Government’s answer to Elbaz’s brief is now due February 8, 2021.

This marks yet another delay in the appeal case, in which Elbaz seeks to vacate her sentence of 240 months in prison.

According to the evidence presented at trial, Elbaz and her co-conspirators fraudulently sold and marketed binary options to investors located in the United States and throughout the world through two websites, known as BinaryBook and BigOption. The evidence showed that in her role as CEO of Yukom, Elbaz, along with her co-conspirators and subordinates, misled investors using BinaryBook and BigOption by falsely claiming to represent the interests of investors when, in fact, the owners of BinaryBook and BigOption profited when investors lost money.

The fraudulent scheme led investors to purchase more than $100 million in binary options.

Representatives of BinaryBook and BigOption, working under Elbaz’s supervision, misrepresented the terms of so-called “bonuses,” “risk free trades” and “insured trades,” and deceptively used these supposed benefits in a manner that in fact harmed investors.

As per Court orders, Elbaz will have to pay restitution in the amount of $28 million to harmed investors.