American Man Faces Prison Time For Not Disclosing $13m Of Crypto Punks NFT Sales

A US man from Pennsylvania is facing up to six years in prison after pleading guilty to filing false tax returns to the Inland Revenue Service (IRS) that hid millions of dollars in income from sales of Crypto Punks NFTs.

In federal court on April 9, Waylon Wilcox, 45, admitted to underreporting over $13 million in income from 97 Crypto Punks transactions between 2021 and 2022.

GUY MADE $13M FLIPPING PIXELATED NFTS—TOLD THE IRS “LOL, NEVER HEARD OF CRYPTO”

Waylon Wilcox, 45, of Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty to hiding over $13 million in profits from flipping 97 CryptoPunks NFTs—reporting nothing to the IRS in 2021 and 2022.

But when tax time came?… pic.twitter.com/RJACf8z6IU

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) April 12, 2025

Wilcox Was A Punks Whale Who Sold 62 NFTs At Their Peak

Wilcox reduced his tax bill by underreporting more than $13m in Crypto Punks sales by over $3.2 million, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

According to court filings, Wilcox sold 62 Punks in 2021 for $7.4 million. The Pennsylvania man then sold 35 more in 2022 for around $4.9 million.

Prosecutors say the misrepresentations allowed him to dodge $2.18 million in taxes in 2021 and $1.09 million in 2022. However, Wilcox allegedly checked the’ no’ box when asked on his 2021 and 2022 tax returns whether he had disposed of any digital assets.

Per the press release, prosecutors state the misrepresentations allowed him to dodge $2.18 million in taxes in 2021 and $1.09 million in 2022.

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“IRS Criminal Investigation is committed to unraveling complex financial schemes involving virtual currencies and non-fungible token transactions designed to conceal taxable income,” Yury Kruty, Philadelphia Field Office Special Agent in Charge, said in the press release.

They added, “In today’s economic environment, it’s more important than ever that the American people feel confident that everyone is playing by the rules and paying the taxes they owe.”

The Pennsylvania Attorney’s Office warned that when an individual sells an NFT, they must report sales proceeds and any gains or losses from the asset’s sale on their tax return.

Wilcox faces a penalty of up to six years in prison for the charges against him. He will also likely face a term of supervised release and a fine under federal law.

Crypto Punks Down Over 85% From The Top As Wilcox Sold The Top

(COINGECKO)

Although he faces prison time and a hefty fine, Waylon Wilcox sold his Crypto Punks during their peak across 2021 and 2022.

Today they have a floor price of 42.49 ETH (around $69,000), at their height in August 2021, the floor price was 125 ETH (worth almost $479,000 at the time), per CoinGecko.

In ETH terms, Punks are down 66% from the top. However, against USD, the collection is down 85.7% from that all-time high. Just last week, a CryptoPunks holder sold their super-rare alien Punk for $6 million, taking a $10 million (500 ETH) loss on the trade.

CryptoPunks are an NFT collection of 10,000 algorithmically generated pixel characters. They hold prestige because they are one of the earliest collections to launch.

Punks were among the most sought-after collections during the NFT craze in 2021 and 2022. During that time, trading volume for NFTs reached as high as $2.4 billion daily.

However, the volume has dried up, barring a few spikes amid frenzied periods. Per CoinGecko, overall sales in the past 24 hours is just $4.9 million.

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