Man convicted in Tampa in ‘Undead Apes’ blockchain case commits suicide, family says

One of two men convicted of what federal prosecutors described as a “rug pull” blockchain fraud scheme committed suicide two weeks ago, according to his family.

Berman Jerry Nowlin died December 21 at his home in Alabama. His cause of death was unclear, but his family told the Tampa Bay Times that he committed suicide. He was 21 years old.

Nowlin was awaiting his sentencing date in January after a Tampa jury found him guilty of federal wire fraud and money laundering charges. Prosecutors had alleged he worked with Devin Rhoden, a senior airman at MacDill Air Force Base who was one of Nowlin’s childhood friends, in a cryptocurrency project that cost investors $135,000 .

Although the government called him an active participant in a criminal scheme, his family and lawyer insisted he was an unwitting accomplice who helped with the coding and technical aspects of creating the blockchain tokens at the center of the affair. They accused Rhoden of being primarily responsible for the fraud.

Nowlin thought the legal system would exonerate him, his family said. After his conviction, he became deeply depressed and withdrawn, reluctant to leave his home.

“In his eyes, I don’t think he thought he did anything wrong,” said Nowlin’s brother, Daniel Barker. “My brother was just a young, naive child who was somehow taken advantage of.”

Nowlin had been diagnosed with autism, his family said.

His mother, Deanna Ambrose, said a psychiatrist who examined him found he was well above average in terms of intelligence. He did well in school, but possessed the emotional maturity of a 14-year-old, she said. He never had any problems.

“He’s like a little kid in a lot of ways,” Ambrose said. “Anyone who spoke to him could tell he was just special. He wasn’t like the rest of us.

Autism made Nowlin’s social interactions difficult; most of his friends were people he only knew online. He taught himself to write computer code. He spent much of his time playing online games and chatting on platforms like Discord.

That’s how he met Rhoden.

In spring 2022, Nowlin and Rhoden collaborated to create a series of non-fungible token collections, known as “Undead Apes” and “Undead Lady Apes.” The tokens, which they traded on the Solana blockchain, depicted colorful skeletonized primates.

Rhoden promoted the collections on the messaging platform Discord and on the social media site X, formerly known as Twitter. The buzz about them pushed their resale value up to $360 and made Rhoden and Nowlin a small fortune.

Investor enthusiasm increased in April 2022 following the announcement of an upcoming third collection known as “Undead Tombstone.” As anticipation for the new collection grew, the project was suddenly abandoned. Prices have fallen. Investors were left with worthless assets while Rhoden and Nowlin, prosecutors say, made $135,000.

Nowlin’s attorney, J. Jervis Wise, argued at trial that Nowlin had no reason to engage in any fraudulent scheme. The first two blockchain creations were legitimate, successful, and gave people the product they wanted.

Wise described his client as a behind-the-scenes player in the creation of the tokens, while Rhoden was responsible for marketing the tokens to potential investors. He knew nothing about plans to engage in the carpet removal project, Wise said.

“Nowlin had no knowledge of what Rhoden was doing,” Wise told the Times. “Nowlin did not participate in any scheme with Rhoden to attempt to defraud anyone.”

But federal prosecutors said Nowlin was indeed part of the scheme. They presented evidence that Nowlin used a money laundering technique known as “chain hopping” to move fraud proceeds from Solana to the Ethereum blockchain. He then converted the cryptocurrency to US dollars, which he and Rhoden shared.

Court documents cite online conversations in which the two men discussed the theft.

One of Rhoden’s fellow airmen led investigators to him. He later pleaded guilty to federal charges and testified at Nowlin’s trial. Prosecutors acknowledged his cooperation in securing Nowlin’s conviction. He was sentenced in November to five years of probation.

Multiple efforts to reach Rhoden for comment were unsuccessful.

Nowlin used a flip phone after his arrest, his mother said, because he was prohibited from accessing the Internet. He followed his pretrial restrictions “to the letter,” she said. Technological restrictions prevented him from presenting some evidence, she said, including documents indicating he had tried to recover investors’ money.

“He tried to do everything right,” she said.

Wise said it’s possible a judge would have given Nowlin probation or another sentence less than prison time. He also could have appealed for a new trial.

Nowlin’s mother said the prospect of incarceration wasn’t what bothered him as much as the stain of a criminal conviction. He thought he would be unable to work with computers, which would defeat his goals of working in technology.

Ambrose said she wanted people to know her son was more than what was portrayed in court.

She remembers the boy who was the first to surprise her with flowers for Mother’s Day and make her breakfast, who helped her when her own mother underwent cancer treatment and who is said to have could take anyone with him on his vacation to Jamaica, but he chose his mother.

Beyond his digital world, he loved fishing and traveling and dreamed of a nomadic life. He planned to set up a remote workstation in a van so he could earn money and travel at the same time.

“She was a beautiful soul,” her mother said.

Need help?

If you or someone you know is considering suicide, contact the 24-hour National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255; contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741; or chat with someone online at suicidepreventionlifeline.org. The Tampa Bay Crisis Center can be accessed by calling 211 or visiting Crisiscenter.com.

Correction: Berman Jerry Nowlin died on December 21. A previous version of this story included an incorrect date.