SocialFi and token launchpad app Believe Founder Benjamin Pasternak has been arrested on charges of strangulation in the second degree and assault, according to public records from the New York Criminal Court.
According to New York State's unified court system, the 26-year-old Pasternak was arrested on Tuesday for the incident that occurred on March 31.
Pasternak faces one count of strangulation in the second degree and one count of assault in the third degree with intent to cause physical injury. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges and is set to appear in court on June 11, according to the website.
Believe is a Solana-based platform that lets users buy and trade tokens associated with creators and influencers. It also allows users to launch cryptocurrencies directly on Solana by replying to posts from Believe's account on X.
The app recently sparked controversy after users and investors accused Pasternak and his team of orchestrating a rug pull. A class-action lawsuit filed on March 23 alleges that deceptive practices by Pasternak and his companies resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in investor losses.
Specifically, the lawsuit claims the team forced a migration from the original native token, Launchcoin, to a new token called Believe last October. This allegedly created 333 million new tokens for insiders, diluting existing holdings by about one-third. The tokens of those who did not migrate were destroyed.
The lawsuit alleges that Pasternak disappeared after the forced migration, providing no explanation or updates to investors.
"Pasternak ran the same play three times, under three different token names: generate excitement, bring consumers in, collect fees, and let the token collapse," the complaint said. "Each time, he and his entities profited on every transaction, including the sell-offs that wiped out consumers."
Data from Coingecko shows that the platform's native token has plummeted 99.7% since its May 2025 peak, now trading at $0.0007009. It has fallen 24% in the past 24 hours.
It is unclear whether Pasternak's recent arrest is associated with the civil lawsuit he is facing. The Block has reached out to Believe for comment.
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