Prosecutors Seek Leniency for Ex-Celsius Executive Cohen-Pavon

Federal prosecutors filed a letter on Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York requesting a reduced sentence for Roni Cohen-Pavon, the former chief revenue officer at Celsius. They cited his substantial cooperation with investigators and his readiness to testify against former CEO Alex Mashinsky.

The submission, made by U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton, did not propose a specific prison term. Prosecutors asked the court to apply sentencing rules that permit a reduction when a defendant provides substantial assistance to the government.

Clayton wrote that Cohen-Pavon’s cooperation was public and known to Mashinsky and that it was ‘likely a significant factor’ in Mashinsky’s decision to plead guilty months before his January 2025 trial date.

Cohen-Pavon pleaded guilty in September 2023 to fraud and conspiracy to commit price manipulation related to Celsius’s CEL token. His sentencing is scheduled before U.S. District Judge John G. Koeltl; the judge rescheduled the hearing from May 7 to May 13.

Defense attorneys asked the court to impose time served, arguing Cohen-Pavon has accepted responsibility for his role in the CEL token scheme.

Celsius, a cryptocurrency lending platform, collapsed in 2022 and froze customer withdrawals. Prosecutors have said conduct by company executives, including manipulation of the CEL token, contributed to the platform’s failure and to billions in losses.

Mashinsky pleaded guilty to commodities and securities fraud and was sentenced to 12 years in prison in May 2025. Prosecutors said Cohen-Pavon’s cooperation helped secure that earlier plea.

The prosecutors’ letter said the Cohen-Pavon sentencing would likely conclude the criminal cases tied directly to Celsius management.

The filing arrived as other high-profile crypto cases moved through the same court. A judge in the Southern District of New York recently denied former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried’s bid for a new trial; his appeals are pending.