Hawk Tuah Girl Faces Crypto Scandal as Hawkcoin Crashes 95%

NEW YORK, NY — Haliey Welch, the 22-year-old internet sensation known as the “Hawk Tuah Girl,” is embroiled in a cryptocurrency scandal after her meme coin, Hawkcoin, lost 95% of its value within days of its launch. Investors are demanding answers, and Welch is now cooperating with legal teams to address the fallout.

Welch, who rose to fame after a viral nightclub interview, launched Hawkcoin on December 4, 2024. The Solana-based token, trading under $HAWK, initially soared to a valuation of $500 million before plummeting to $26.4 million. Many investors accuse Welch and her team of orchestrating a pump-and-dump scheme, where insiders artificially inflate a token’s value before selling off their holdings.

Data from Bubblemaps and Dexscreener revealed that 80% to 90% of Hawkcoin’s supply was controlled by insider wallets at launch. One wallet reportedly purchased 17.5% of the token’s supply for $993,000 and sold it for a $1.3 million profit. OverHere, the launchpad for Hawkcoin, has also come under scrutiny. Clinton So, founder of overHere, allegedly converted the Tuah Foundation—the entity behind Hawkcoin—into an offshore company to evade securities laws.

Welch initially remained silent as backlash grew but later issued a statement on X (formerly Twitter). “I take this situation extremely seriously and am fully cooperating with the legal team to uncover the truth and hold the responsible parties accountable,” she wrote. Her legal team claims Welch had limited involvement in operational decisions and blames automated bots for manipulating the token’s price.

Court filings in New York show that investors who collectively lost $151,000 have sued the Hawkcoin team, including overHere and Alexander Larson Shultz, a key member known as “Doc Hollywood.” The lawsuit alleges that Hawkcoin was marketed as a registered security, misleading buyers into believing it was a legitimate investment.

Shultz, a musician-turned-crypto enthusiast with ties to Canadian entertainer Howie Mandel, is accused of controlling all token-related decisions. OverHere has distanced itself from Shultz, claiming he ignored transparency calls and mismanaged funds.

The scandal has sparked outrage on social media, with investors expressing anger and disappointment. “Hailey Welch’s flashy lifestyle blinded us to the risks,” one investor lamented. The controversy has also reignited debates about the role of influencers in promoting high-risk, unregulated investments.

Welch’s podcast, “Talk Tuah,” has been inactive since the scandal broke, leaving fans and critics alike wondering about her next move. As legal proceedings unfold, the Hawk Tuah Girl’s future in the crypto world remains uncertain.