Ohio Man Loses
Life Savings
in $425K Crypto
Scam—
Here’s How
It Went Down
Ohio Man Loses Life Savings in $425K Crypto Scam—Here’s How It Went Down
by Samuel Edyme
3 minutes ago
in Crypto News
0
As the crypto market• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Платежные системы интернета » Криптовалюта continues to offer lucrative opportunities for investors,
it has also attracted malicious actors who consistently devise new schemes to
defraud inexperienced or beginner investors.
The latest press release by the US• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Доллар США Department of Justice (DoJ) highlighted a
recent example of such fraud. The report revealed that an Ohio man fell victim
to a cryptocurrency• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Платежные системы интернета » Криптовалюта scam and lost his life savings to fraudulent activities.
Related Reading: No Prison For FTX’s Gary Wang: Key Figure In $8 Billion Fraud
Avoids Jail Time
How It Went Down
As reported by the DoJ, the incident began in October 2023 when the Elyria
resident encountered a pop-up window on his computer warning of a
technical issue.
Following the prompt, he called the provided number, only to be told that his
retirement account had been compromised. The scammers falsely claimed that
funds from his account were being wired to China• Китайская Народная Республика (КНР), Russia, and a Las Vegas
casino.
To resolve the issue, the victim granted remote access to his computer,
unknowingly giving the scammers full control over his financial accounts .
Over time, the fraudsters transferred $425,000, the victim s life
savings, into various cryptocurrency• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Платежные системы интернета » Криптовалюта wallets.
The stolen funds were eventually converted into 947,883 Tether• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Платежные системы интернета » Криптовалюта » Tether (USDT), a
blockchain• Информационные технологии » Информационно-коммуникационные технологии » Информационные технологии и телекоммуникации » Базы данных » Публичная база транзакций » Блокчейн
• Высокие технологии » Информационные технологии и телекоммуникации » Базы данных » Публичная база транзакций » Блокчейн-based stablecoin, and transferred to a digital wallet.
The Federal Authorities Intervention
Federal investigators used blockchain• Информационные технологии » Информационно-коммуникационные технологии » Информационные технологии и телекоммуникации » Базы данных » Публичная база транзакций » Блокчейн
• Высокие технологии » Информационные технологии и телекоммуникации » Базы данных » Публичная база транзакций » Блокчейн analysis to trace the
stolen cryptocurrency• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Платежные системы интернета » Криптовалюта following the theft. On July 31, 2024, law enforcement
executed a federal seizure warrant, recovering the stolen 947,883 USDT tokens
and transferring them to a government-controlled virtual wallet .
The US• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Доллар США Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio has since filed a
civil forfeiture complaint seeking to confiscate the recovered funds. If
successful, the government plans to provide compensation to the victim.
The complaint also alleges that additional cryptocurrency• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Платежные системы интернета » Криптовалюта in the associated
wallet is subject to forfeiture as fraud proceeds. However, the claims in the
complaint remain allegations at this stage, requiring proof by a
preponderance of the evidence during trial.
According to the report, Tether• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Платежные системы интернета » Криптовалюта » Tether facilitated the investigation. The US• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Доллар США
Department of Justice noted:
The FBI Cleveland Division is actively investigating cryptocurrency• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Платежные системы интернета » Криптовалюта fraud
schemes perpetrated on victims throughout the United States• Соединённые Штаты Америки (США), including in the
Northern District of Ohio. The United States• Соединённые Штаты Америки (США) is represented in this matter by
Assistant United States• Соединённые Штаты Америки (США) Attorney James L. Morford. The USAO would like to
acknowledge Tether• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Платежные системы интернета » Криптовалюта » Tether for its assistance in this matter.
Notably, this incident is just one of many crypto-related fraud cases
uncovered by the US• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Доллар США Department of Justice in recent months. Earlier this
month, the department exposed a $73 million crypto laundering operation .
Related Reading: $73M Crypto Laundering Scheme Uncovered as Suspect Pleads
Guilty—Key Details
One of the key individuals involved, Daren Li, admitted guilt by pleading
guilty to a charge of conspiracy to commit money laundering using
cryptocurrency• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Платежные системы интернета » Криптовалюта, marking a significant step toward justice. The global digital
currency• Экономика » Финансы » Платежные средства » Платежные системы интернета » Криптовалюта market cap value on the 1-day chart. Source: TradingView.com
Featured image created with DALL-E, Chart from TradingView