{"id":11154795,"date":"2025-02-13T17:38:44","date_gmt":"2025-02-13T22:38:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/?p=11154795"},"modified":"2025-03-20T19:28:36","modified_gmt":"2025-03-20T23:28:36","slug":"dead-taneytown-teacher-justin-rieger-accused-of-ponzi-scheme-has-more-than-23000-in-cryptocurrency-sun-found","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/02\/13\/dead-taneytown-teacher-justin-rieger-accused-of-ponzi-scheme-has-more-than-23000-in-cryptocurrency-sun-found\/","title":{"rendered":"Dead Taneytown teacher accused of ‘Ponzi scheme’ has more than $23,000 in cryptocurrency, Sun found"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Taneytown teacher who police say died by suicide last week<\/a> has at least $23,000 sitting in various cryptocurrency wallets, The Baltimore Sun found \u2014 <\/em>and there may be more out there.<\/p>\n

Justin Rieger, 22, has been accused by investors<\/a> across at least six states of defrauding them. The Carroll County Sheriff\u2019s Office confirmed this week that Rieger is the focus of a financial fraud investigation as well as a child sex abuse investigation.<\/p>\n

The sex abuse investigation will close due to Rieger’s death. However, the financial fraud investigation remains open.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have received information that leads us to believe that Mr. Rieger may have been involved in some sort of fraud involving personal finances,\u201d said Carroll County Sheriff\u2019s Office Major David Stem in an email. \u201cWe are continuing to investigate this to determine if any crimes have been committed, if Mr. Rieger was involved in an investment scheme, and if so, to what extent.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rieger invested money on other peoples’ behalf in at least six states, The Sun confirmed Wednesday<\/a>. He also worked as a substitute teacher with Carroll County Public Schools, as well as a volunteer leader with Christian organization Young Life. He was placed on leave from both following an accusation levied against him in early January.<\/p>\n

It is not clear what the allegation against him was.<\/p>\n

However, some who invested with Rieger told The Sun he ran “a Ponzi scheme,” defrauding them and many others.<\/p>\n

Five people interviewed by The Sun invested at least $300,000 with Rieger; they believe many others invested even more. While some did get back the money they put in, far more lost the vast majority of the money they gave Rieger. They fear it may be gone forever.<\/p>\n

The Sun reviewed contracts, deposits and withdrawals, emails and text messages between them and Rieger in order to verify their investments.<\/p>\n

Several who invested with Rieger said they specifically invested with him in cryptocurrency.<\/p>\n\n

One investor, Joana Floros, provided the identifying numbers of cryptocurrency wallets she transferred her money into, which The Sun was able to use to review Rieger\u2019s activity on the crypto registry Blockchain.<\/p>\n

Investors who sent money to Rieger\u2019s multiple crypto wallets provided a look into some of Rieger\u2019s online trading activities, in multiple cryptocurrencies including ethereum and bitcoin.<\/p>\n

The Sun examined six cryptocurrency transactions between investors and Rieger to specify blockchain and wallet destinations, but can only trace the contents of two of those wallets, which contained ethereum and bitcoin. The Sun found that Rieger had a cryptocurrency account open since 2009, though he began trading more frequently and in higher amounts in 2016.<\/p>\n

The Sun found he had emptied a crypto wallet as recently as November 2024. One trade was made in a bitcoin wallet on Feb. 12, more than a week after his death. It may have been an automated transaction.<\/p>\n

Some currencies Rieger told investors he was trading in, but which could not be verified Thursday, include polkadot, solana, questcoin, zombie and other alternative currencies that rapidly gained and lost value.<\/p>\n

Such currencies are sometimes popular with day traders looking to earn money on sharp swings in value but are largely worth far less than an American penny.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are feverishly working to find accounts, where money may be stored, credit cards and things like that,\u201d said Stem. \u201cWe\u2019re still sorting through tons of financial avenues and records and uncovering things as we go along.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stem urged people who believed themselves to have been defrauded by Rieger to provide officers with documents, receipts or information on cryptocurrency wallets they sent money to.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t be embarrassed to come forward,\u201d Stem said. \u201cWe want to give you the information to recover any monies you may have lost.\u201d<\/p>\n

It is unclear if Rieger was the sole person with access to the password to the cryptocurrency accounts The Sun examined. Without an account password, there is no way to access such accounts again.<\/p>\n

The Carroll County Sheriff\u2019s Office plans to continue the financial fraud investigation in the hopes of flushing out more potential victims and possibly even \u201cmaking them whole again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rieger\u2019s wife, Anne Rieger, n\u00e9e Saunders, had publicly posted in support of her husband in the weeks before his death. In the posts, she shamed the community she said abandoned him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI long for the day when we can both freely speak up about what has happened,\u201d she wrote. \u201cNo weapon formed against us shall prosper.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anne Rieger did not respond to questions about allegations of financial fraud carried out by Rieger sent this week.<\/p>\n

Attorney Nicholas R. McDaniels emailed The Sun on her behalf.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnne remains devastated by the recent and unexpected death of her husband, and we are respectfully requesting that she be afforded privacy,\u201d McDaniels wrote. \u201cAt this time, however, Anne is actively working with the authorities to make sense of this tragedy and, as such, we are unable to offer any further comment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Got a tip? Contact investigative editor Kate Cimini at 443-842-2621 or kcimini@baltsun.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Taneytown teacher who police say died by suicide last week has at least $23,000 sitting in various cryptocurrency wallets, The Baltimore Sun found. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":262,"featured_media":11151960,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"apple_news_api_created_at":"2025-02-13T22:38:48Z","apple_news_api_id":"ac82eb05-f184-4d42-bc53-3fbe1dd0a271","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2025-02-14T20:16:36Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAQ==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/ArILrBfGETUK8Uz--HdCicQ","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"middle","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"subheadline":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[75,77,86,84,85],"tags":[26154,202],"feature":[],"location":[],"type-of-work":[],"coauthors":[26119,26263],"class_list":["post-11154795","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-carroll-county-times","category-cct-crime-public-safety","category-crime-public-safety","category-local-news","category-news","tag-justin-rieger-investigation","tag-sun-investigates"],"post_status":"","edit_last":0,"edit_lock":0,"highlights":"","original_byline":"","original_canonical":"","original_category":"","original_email":"","original_id":0,"original_pubdate":"","original_source":"","primary_section":"86","primary_tag":26154,"print_workflow_body":{"deck_headline":"Sun investigates","print_title":"Dead Taneytown teacher accused of 'Ponzi scheme' has more than $23,000 in cryptocurrency, Sun found","print_subheadline":"","print_priority":"","print_placement":"cover","print_planned_ready":"","print_pub_date":1739491200,"print_slug":"TBS-L-CRYPTORIEGER-0214","print_content":"

The Taneytown teacher who police say died by suicide last week<\/a> has at least $23,000 sitting in various cryptocurrency wallets, The Baltimore Sun found \u2014 <\/em>and there may be more out there.<\/p>\n

Justin Rieger, 22, has been accused by investors<\/a> across at least six states of defrauding them. The Carroll County Sheriff\u2019s Office confirmed this week that Rieger is the focus of a financial fraud investigation as well as a child sex abuse investigation.<\/p>\n

The sex abuse investigation will close due to Rieger's death. However, the financial fraud investigation remains open.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have received information that leads us to believe that Mr. Rieger may have been involved in some sort of fraud involving personal finances,\u201d said Carroll County Sheriff\u2019s Office Major David Stem in an email. \u201cWe are continuing to investigate this to determine if any crimes have been committed, if Mr. Rieger was involved in an investment scheme, and if so, to what extent.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rieger invested money on other peoples' behalf in at least six states, The Sun confirmed Wednesday<\/a>. He also worked as a substitute teacher with Carroll County Public Schools, as well as a volunteer leader with Christian organization Young Life. He was placed on leave from both following an accusation levied against him in early January.<\/p>\n

It is not clear what the allegation against him was.<\/p>\n

However, some who invested with Rieger told The Sun he ran \"a Ponzi scheme,\" defrauding them and many others.<\/p>\n

Five people interviewed by The Sun invested at least $300,000 with Rieger; they believe many others invested even more. While some did get back the money they put in, far more lost the vast majority of the money they gave Rieger. They fear it may be gone forever.<\/p>\n

The Sun reviewed contracts, deposits and withdrawals, emails and text messages between them and Rieger in order to verify their investments.<\/p>\n

Several who invested with Rieger said they specifically invested with him in cryptocurrency.<\/p>\n

One investor, Joana Floros, provided the identifying numbers of cryptocurrency wallets she transferred her money into, which The Sun was able to use to review Rieger\u2019s activity on the crypto registry Blockchain.<\/p>\n

Investors who sent money to Rieger\u2019s multiple crypto wallets provided a look into some of Rieger\u2019s online trading activities, in multiple cryptocurrencies including ethereum and bitcoin.<\/p>\n

The Sun examined six cryptocurrency transactions between investors and Rieger to specify blockchain and wallet destinations, but can only trace the contents of two of those wallets, which contained ethereum and bitcoin. The Sun found that Rieger had been trading cryptocurrency since 2009, though he began trading more frequently and in higher amounts in 2016.<\/p>\n

The Sun found he had emptied a crypto wallet as recently as November 2024. One trade was made in a bitcoin wallet on Feb. 12, more than a week after his death. It may have been an automated transaction.<\/p>\n

Some currencies Rieger told investors he was trading in, but which could not be verified Thursday, include polkadot, solana, questcoin, zombie and other alternative currencies that rapidly gained and lost value.<\/p>\n

Such currencies are sometimes popular with day traders looking to earn money on sharp swings in value but are largely worth far less than an American penny.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are feverishly working to find accounts, where money may be stored, credit cards and things like that,\u201d said Stem. \u201cWe\u2019re still sorting through tons of financial avenues and records and uncovering things as we go along.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stem urged people who believed themselves to have been defrauded by Rieger to provide officers with documents, receipts or information on cryptocurrency wallets they sent money to.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t be embarrassed to come forward,\u201d Stem said. \u201cWe want to give you the information to recover any monies you may have lost.\u201d<\/p>\n

It is unclear if Rieger was the sole person with access to the password to the cryptocurrency accounts The Sun examined. Without an account password, there is no way to access such accounts again.<\/p>\n

The Carroll County Sheriff\u2019s Office plans to continue the financial fraud investigation in the hopes of flushing out more potential victims and possibly even \u201cmaking them whole again.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rieger\u2019s wife, Anne Rieger, n\u00e9e Saunders, had publicly posted in support of her husband in the weeks before his death. In the posts, she shamed the community she said abandoned him.<\/p>\n

\u201cI long for the day when we can both freely speak up about what has happened,\u201d she wrote. \u201cNo weapon formed against us shall prosper.\u201d<\/p>\n

Anne Rieger did not respond to questions about allegations of financial fraud carried out by Rieger sent this week.<\/p>\n

Attorney Nicholas R. McDaniels emailed The Sun on her behalf.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnne remains devastated by the recent and unexpected death of her husband, and we are respectfully requesting that she be afforded privacy,\u201d McDaniels wrote. \u201cAt this time, however, Anne is actively working with the authorities to make sense of this tragedy and, as such, we are unable to offer any further comment.\u201d<\/p>\n

Got a tip? Contact investigative editor Kate Cimini at 443-842-2621 or kcimini@baltsun.com.<\/em><\/p>\n","print_budget_line":"","print_excerpt":"The Taneytown teacher who police say died by suicide last week has at least $23,000 sitting in various cryptocurrency wallets, The Baltimore Sun found.","print_notes":"","photo_limits":"Photo limits are: 1 featured image, 5 featured gallery images, 5 embedded gallery images and 5 in-article embedded images. Articles that exceed these limits will not export. Please adjust images to reflect these limits.","print_featured_gallery_richtext":"","print_inline_galleries_richtext":"","print_inline_images_richtext":""},"print_workflow_exported_ts":"1739486479","print_workflow_exported_username":"Tricia Bishop","print_workflow_shapes":"","print_workflow_side":{"print_section":24225,"print_status":24232,"print_endpoint":"tribune","add_export_buttons":""},"really_short_title":"","short_title":"","syndication_source":"","market_neutral_title":"","social_title":"","dfm_hub_post_id":0,"paywall_level":"premium","featured_media_content":{"content_type":"image","content":{"id":11151960,"title":"IMG_bal-bs0110408561-202_2_1_G76RO8C3_L259496940.JPG","filename":"TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/02\/12\/justin-rieger-ponzi-scheme-claims\/img_bal-bs0110408561-202_2_1_g76ro8c3_l259496940-jpg\/","alt":"","author":"36","description":"","caption":"Francis Scott Key senior Justin Rieger photographed Friday, May 29,. 2020.","name":"img_bal-bs0110408561-202_2_1_g76ro8c3_l259496940-jpg","status":"inherit","uploadedTo":11152947,"date":1739371737000,"modified":1742854411000,"menuOrder":0,"mime":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.svg","dateFormatted":"February 12, 2025","nonces":{"update":false,"delete":false,"edit":false},"editLink":false,"meta":false,"authorName":"dfm-photoupload","authorLink":"","uploadedToTitle":"Investors say Taneytown teacher found dead defrauded them in Ponzi scheme","uploadedToLink":null,"filesizeInBytes":253620,"filesizeHumanReadable":"248 KB","context":"","height":1487,"width":2048,"orientation":"landscape","sizes":{"thumbnail":{"height":"150","width":"150","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","orientation":"landscape"},"medium":{"height":218,"width":300,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg?w=300","orientation":"landscape"},"large":{"height":744,"width":1024,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg?w=1024","orientation":"landscape"},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg","height":1487,"width":2048,"orientation":"landscape"}},"custom_caption":"Justin Rieger, 22, died by apparent suicide last week. Since then, residents across the eastern seaboard have alleged he defrauded them in a Ponzi scheme."},"data":[{"id":11151960,"title":"IMG_bal-bs0110408561-202_2_1_G76RO8C3_L259496940.JPG","filename":"TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/02\/12\/justin-rieger-ponzi-scheme-claims\/img_bal-bs0110408561-202_2_1_g76ro8c3_l259496940-jpg\/","alt":"","author":"36","description":"","caption":"Francis Scott Key senior Justin Rieger photographed Friday, May 29,. 2020.","name":"img_bal-bs0110408561-202_2_1_g76ro8c3_l259496940-jpg","status":"inherit","uploadedTo":11152947,"date":1739371737000,"modified":1742854411000,"menuOrder":0,"mime":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.svg","dateFormatted":"February 12, 2025","nonces":{"update":false,"delete":false,"edit":false},"editLink":false,"meta":false,"authorName":"dfm-photoupload","authorLink":"","uploadedToTitle":"Investors say Taneytown teacher found dead defrauded them in Ponzi scheme","uploadedToLink":null,"filesizeInBytes":253620,"filesizeHumanReadable":"248 KB","context":"","height":1487,"width":2048,"orientation":"landscape","sizes":{"thumbnail":{"height":"150","width":"150","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","orientation":"landscape"},"medium":{"height":218,"width":300,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg?w=300","orientation":"landscape"},"large":{"height":744,"width":1024,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg?w=1024","orientation":"landscape"},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg","height":1487,"width":2048,"orientation":"landscape"}},"custom_caption":"Justin Rieger, 22, died by apparent suicide last week. Since then, residents across the eastern seaboard have alleged he defrauded them in a Ponzi scheme."}],"rendered_content":"\"\""},"attachments":[],"authors":[{"ID":11136653,"display_name":"Kate Cimini","description":"","first_name":"Kate","last_name":"Cimini","user_nicename":"kate-cimini","user_login":"kate-cimini","user_email":"KCimini@baltsun.com","type":"guest-author","linked_account":0,"website":"","twitter":"","facebook":"","google_plus":""},{"ID":10577324,"display_name":"Riley Guti\u00e9rrez McDermid","description":"","first_name":"Riley Guti\u00e9rrez","last_name":"Mcdermid","user_nicename":"riley-gutierrez-mcdermid","user_login":"riley-gutierrez-mcdermid","user_email":"","type":"guest-author","linked_account":0,"website":"","twitter":"","facebook":"","google_plus":""}],"taxonomies":{"category":[{"term_id":75,"name":"Carroll County Times","slug":"carroll-county-times","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":75,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":60243,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":77,"name":"CCT Crime and Public Safety","slug":"cct-crime-public-safety","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":77,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":75,"count":5420,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":86,"name":"Crime and Public Safety","slug":"crime-public-safety","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":86,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":85,"count":28718,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":84,"name":"Local News","slug":"local-news","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":84,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":10282,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":85,"name":"News","slug":"news","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":85,"taxonomy":"category","description":"","parent":0,"count":3,"filter":"raw"}],"post_tag":[{"term_id":26154,"name":"Justin Rieger investigation","slug":"justin-rieger-investigation","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":26154,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"Former Francis Scott Key High School substitute teacher Justin Rieger who police say died by apparent suicide earlier in February in a Taneytown park was the subject of a criminal investigation that began before his death, the Carroll County Sheriff\u2019s Office confirmed.\r\n\r\n","parent":0,"count":12,"filter":"raw"},{"term_id":202,"name":"Sun Investigates","slug":"sun-investigates","term_group":0,"term_taxonomy_id":202,"taxonomy":"post_tag","description":"","parent":0,"count":2160,"filter":"raw"}]},"featured_media_array":{"id":11151960,"title":"IMG_bal-bs0110408561-202_2_1_G76RO8C3_L259496940.JPG","filename":"TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg","link":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/02\/12\/justin-rieger-ponzi-scheme-claims\/img_bal-bs0110408561-202_2_1_g76ro8c3_l259496940-jpg\/","alt":"","author":"36","description":"","caption":"Francis Scott Key senior Justin Rieger photographed Friday, May 29,. 2020.","name":"img_bal-bs0110408561-202_2_1_g76ro8c3_l259496940-jpg","status":"inherit","uploadedTo":11152947,"date":1739371737000,"modified":1742854411000,"menuOrder":0,"mime":"image\/jpeg","type":"image","subtype":"jpeg","icon":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-includes\/images\/media\/default.svg","dateFormatted":"February 12, 2025","nonces":{"update":false,"delete":false,"edit":false},"editLink":false,"meta":false,"authorName":"dfm-photoupload","authorLink":"","uploadedToTitle":"Investors say Taneytown teacher found dead defrauded them in Ponzi scheme","uploadedToLink":null,"filesizeInBytes":253620,"filesizeHumanReadable":"248 KB","context":"","height":1487,"width":2048,"orientation":"landscape","sizes":{"thumbnail":{"height":"150","width":"150","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","orientation":"landscape"},"medium":{"height":218,"width":300,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg?w=300","orientation":"landscape"},"large":{"height":744,"width":1024,"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg?w=1024","orientation":"landscape"},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg","height":1487,"width":2048,"orientation":"landscape"}},"custom_caption":"Justin Rieger, 22, died by apparent suicide last week. Since then, residents across the eastern seaboard have alleged he defrauded them in a Ponzi scheme."},"syndication_canonical":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/02\/13\/dead-taneytown-teacher-justin-rieger-accused-of-ponzi-scheme-has-more-than-23000-in-cryptocurrency-sun-found\/","apple_news_notices":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/baltimoresun.com\/2025\/02\/13\/dead-taneytown-teacher-justin-rieger-accused-of-ponzi-scheme-has-more-than-23000-in-cryptocurrency-sun-found\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Dead Taneytown teacher accused of ‘Ponzi scheme’ has more than $23,000 in cryptocurrency, Sun found","url":"http:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/02\/13\/dead-taneytown-teacher-justin-rieger-accused-of-ponzi-scheme-has-more-than-23000-in-cryptocurrency-sun-found\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/2025\/02\/13\/dead-taneytown-teacher-justin-rieger-accused-of-ponzi-scheme-has-more-than-23000-in-cryptocurrency-sun-found\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg?w=150","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/TBS-L-JUSTINRIEGER.jpg"},"articleSection":"Other","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Kate Cimini"},{"@type":"Person","name":"Riley Guti\u00e9rrez McDermid"}],"creator":["Kate Cimini","Riley Guti\u00e9rrez McDermid"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Baltimore Sun","logo":"https:\/\/www.baltimoresun.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/baltimore-sun-fallback.png?w=600"},"keywords":["justin rieger investigation","sun investigates"],"dateCreated":"2025-02-13T22:38:44Z","datePublished":"2025-02-13T22:38:44Z","dateModified":"2025-03-20T23:28:36Z"},"rendered":"