Several investors have filed a lawsuit against Jonathan Mills, the founder of the Hashling NFT project, accusing him of stealing millions from both the NFT venture and an affiliated Bitcoin mining project. Filed on May 14 in Illinois, the court documents claim Mills secretly funneled at least $3 million in assets into a holding company he controls, Satoshi Labs LLC — previously called Proof of Work Labs LLC.

The plaintiffs, who once considered Mills a business partner, accuse him of fraud and breach of fiduciary duty. Despite raising $1.46 million through NFT drops on Solana and Bitcoin, they allege they never received the promised returns. Instead, they say Mills cut contact and presented a bogus shareholder agreement giving himself 67% equity and voting power, while offering others just 2% for up to $20,000 in contributions.

Even though Mills promised that a company name change wouldn’t affect equity stakes, the investors say he used misleading paperwork filled with errors to seize control. They claim this allowed him to lock them out of profits and governance while continuing to benefit from their efforts and investments.

The Hashling NFT concept reportedly stemmed from conversations between Mills and plaintiff Dustin Steerman. Despite Mills’ admission that he had no experience or money to contribute, the team moved forward, recruiting other investors, building NFT art, managing marketing, and even appearing at conferences.

The lawsuit also states Mills involved his girlfriend as an investor and now faces demands for full restitution and the creation of a legal trust over the disputed assets. Mills has not yet responded publicly to the allegations.