Pump.fun developer faces six years in prison after Solana scam

Jarett Dunn, a former senior employee of Pump.fun, has just received a six-year prison sentence that will leave him rotting behind bars. The judge at Wood Green Crown Court in London sentenced him to two counts of fraud and the transfer of criminally obtained assets, to be served concurrently, according to Decrypt.

This Canadian citizen pleaded guilty after a lengthy legal confrontation, during which he tried to justify his actions as whistleblowing rather than intentional crime. However, prosecutors rejected this argument, and the judge showed no sympathy.

Jarett Dunn Withdraws $2 Million in Solana from Pump.fun and Distributes to Thousands of Wallet Addresses

In May 2024, Dunn, who had worked at Pump.fun for only six weeks, stole approximately $2 million worth of Solana (SOL) from the platform. Instead of keeping the money for himself, he sent it to thousands of random wallet addresses on the blockchain.

Dunn immediately publicly admitted this on social media, posting a series of messages about the incident just minutes after the act. “Everyone stay calm, this is a robbery… I’m about to change the course of history. Then rot in prison,” Dunn wrote on X (formerly Twitter). These statements reveal his chaotic and reckless state of mind at the time.

Seen as ‘Crypto Robin Hood’ but the judge shows no sympathy

Interestingly, the crypto community viewed Dunn’s behavior differently. Because he distributed the money to random addresses rather than keeping it, Dunn gained a significant following. Enthusiasts called him the “Crypto Robin Hood”—a legendary figure of a kind thief stealing from the rich to give to the poor.

However, prosecutors did not share this view. Mark Kelly, a friend of Dunn, was present in the courtroom and said prosecutors called Dunn’s self-description a “stunt after being caught.” He also revealed that Dunn’s lawyers may not have been very effective, but Dunn’s voluntary confessions on social media ultimately made it easier for the authorities.

In a broadcast on X Spaces, Dunn even declared he wanted to “kill” Pump.fun “because that’s what you do” and accused the platform of “accidentally hurting people for a long time.” Kelly disclosed that the judge considered these controversial statements carefully when delivering the sentence.

The rocky road to the courtroom

Dunn’s path to sentencing was anything but straightforward. Just four days after the attack, he was arrested at a London hotel near WeWork where Pump.fun operated—also the place he was staying at the time of the incident.

Police immediately found Dunn was not mentally fit for questioning. He was hospitalized for two weeks to improve his mental state after months of not taking medication. This detail highlights Dunn’s complex mental health condition.

The trial process was full of surprises: Dunn pleaded guilty in August 2024 but then tried to withdraw his plea two months later during the trial. This sudden change caused his legal team to withdraw from the case. Dunn spent months trying to find a new lawyer while still under police supervision.

He was remanded in custody for violating bail conditions in July 2025, then pleaded guilty again in August. Despite waiting in HMP Pentonville prison, Dunn attempted to contact the support community through an “intern” managing his X account.

From Pump.fun’s billion-dollar platform to Dunn rotting in prison

Adding insult to injury, Pump.fun—the platform Dunn once worked for—later grew into one of the most successful crypto projects. The platform allows anyone to create a meme token in just seconds by filling out a short form, creating a huge gap in the market.

When Dunn was working there, Pump.fun had only accumulated $43.9 million in revenue. But that figure skyrocketed to $927.2 million, according to Dune Analytics—an incredible growth of over 20 times.

While Pump.fun continued to rake in money, Dunn will rot in prison. The six-year sentence has been handed down, and he remains detained in London. Dunn previously expressed hope of immediate deportation to Canada, but that has not happened yet. His current goal is to try to return to his homeland in the future.