Danny de Hek

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Danny de Hek
Born (1970-01-19) January 19, 1970 (age 56)
Christchurch, New Zealand
OccupationsYouTuber, OSINT researcher
Websitehttps://www.dehek.com/

Danny de Hek (born 19 January 1970[citation needed]) is a New Zealand-based YouTuber and OSINT researcher who has published detailed investigations into alleged Ponzi schemes and cryptocurrency frauds.[1]

Early life

De Hek grew up as a member of a religious cult, from which he was later disassociated. He subsequently worked as an online drop shipper.[1]

Career

De Hek began investigating scams because of a hoax email he saw in the late 2010s.[2] He later established a YouTube channel focused on investigating criminal organizations, Ponzi schemes and high-risk online investment platforms. By 2023 he had produced more than 130 videos about scams.[3]

Pakistan investigations

In June 2025, de Hek began publishing a series of investigations into a sprawling fraud network that had also been charged by the U.S. government with drug trafficking. The reporting followed a U.S. Department of Justice announcement in April 2025 charging eWorldTrade LLC with trafficking synthetic opioids more potent than fentanyl.[4] de Hek's investigation claimed that eWorldTrade was owned by Intersys Limited, a Pakistan-based company formerly known as Abtach, with operations in the United States. The company was run by Azneem Bilwani. The cybersecurity journalist Brian Krebs independently corroborated the connection, reporting that Intersys and its associated networks were implicated in both fentanyl-analog trafficking and online scam operations targeting American consumers.[5][6][7][8]

In response, three lawsuits were filed against de Hek in Karachi, Pakistan. Intersys Limited filed suit against de Hek, Krebs, and other press outlets (Case No. 9387/2025).[9] Two additional lawsuits were filed by members of the Bilwani family seeking declarations, injunctions, and damages under Pakistani law.[10][11]

Goliath Ventures

Beginning in September 2025, de Hek began publishing coverage claiming the Orlando-based firm Goliath Ventures, Inc., run by Christopher Delgado, was a fraudulent unregistered hedge fund operating a ponzi scheme. Subsequent reporting found that Goliath Ventures had raised more than US$500 million from investors America, Canada and the United Arab Emirates without registering with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to solicit or manage investor funds.[12] In October 2025 the company filed a lawsuit against de Hek in Florida's Ninth Judicial Circuit (Orange County), seeking damages and injunctive relief.[13] In November 2025, Goliath Ventures announced that it stopped all payouts to investors, citing that it was undergoing a "forensic audit."[14][15]

HyperVerse

One of de Hek's most prominent investigations concerned HyperVerse (also known as HyperFund), a crypto investment firm co-founded by Australian entrepreneur Sam Lee. de Hek began publishing coverage on HyperVerse in February 2022, claiming the corporation was a Ponzi scheme.[1] The scheme subsequently collapsed, after which investors were no longer able to make withdrawals.[16] In January 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice unsealed an indictment charging Lee with conspiracy to commit securities fraud and wire fraud for orchestrating a US$1.89 billion cryptocurrency fraud scheme.[17] The SEC simultaneously filed civil charges against Lee, alleging that HyperFund was a pyramid scheme with no real source of revenue other than funds received from investors.[16]

Defamation suits

de Hek has been the subject of several defamation actions brought by individuals he has investigated. In March 2023, Texas-based cryptocurrency promoter Stephen Andrew McCullah (who uses the name Steve McCullah) filed suit against de Hek in New Zealand's High Court, claiming YouTube videos de Hek had published about McCullah's activities involving Apollo crypto project were defamatory.[18] De Hek filed defences of truth, honest opinion, qualified privilege, and responsible public interest communication, and applied for security for costs.[18] McCullah discontinued the proceedings in June 2023.[18][19]

Associate Judge Owen Paulsen subsequently awarded de Hek indemnity costs of NZ$27,500, finding that McCullah had never intended to take the proceeding to trial and that the claim was brought not to vindicate his reputation but to stifle further publications—what the court characterised as a "gagging writ".[18][19]

Website removal

In June 2025, de Hek's website, dehek.com, was taken offline after Shavez Ahmed Siddiqui (also known as Shavez Anwar) submitted complaints to the site's hosting provider WP Engine. According to de Hek, the takedown occurred without prior notice and followed his reporting on HyperVerse and its links to Shavez Ahmed Siddiqui.[20] An independent report by BehindMLM noted that Siddiqui had attempted to have de Hek's content removed from several platforms.[21] The website was subsequently restored under the protection of Google Project Shield, a service that provides DDoS protection and other security services pro bono to journalists, news organizations, and human rights groups.

References

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