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Authorities have confiscated more than $6 million worth of cryptocurrency from wallets linked to Southeast Asian scammers targeting U.S. citizens through trust investment schemes.
On September 26, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia reported that "one or more people" had lost millions of dollars as a result of the scam after being misled into believing they were investing in legitimate cryptocurrency ventures.
The FBI traced the stolen funds on the blockchain and found several cryptocurrency wallet addresses associated with the scam that still held over $6 million worth of victims' digital assets.
Tether says it helped authorities by freezing scammers' wallets, which contributed to the "rapid recovery" of the stolen cryptocurrency.
District of Columbia Attorney Matthew Graves said that "usually" scammers and their accounts are located overseas, making recovery difficult.
"In these scams, scammers trick U.S. citizens into believing that they are transferring funds into cryptocurrency investment opportunities, when in reality, they are just unwittingly handing over their money to scammers," he said.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia, victims of these scams are approached through a variety of means, such as redirected text messages, dating apps, and investment groups.
After gaining the trust of victims, scammers recommend cryptocurrency investments but direct them to investment platforms hosted on fraudulent websites that mimic legitimate ones.
Some of the scam platforms may offer lucrative returns and temporary withdrawals; Behind the scenes, all deposits are redirected to a wallet address controlled by the scammers.
Related: Cryptocurrency Founder Paid Los Angeles Police Officers to Help Victims Extort Cryptocurrency, FBI Claims FBI
Assistant Director of the FBI's Criminal Investigation Division, Chad Yarbrough, has stated that cryptocurrency investment scams like the one they just discovered are "devastating" and affect thousands of Americans every day.
"The FBI has seen victims lose millions of dollars, take out second and third mortgages on their homes, all in the hope of finding the next big investment opportunity", he said.
According to the FBI's 2023 Annual Cryptocurrency Scam Report, nearly 71% of reported cryptocurrency scams were related to investment schemes.
Investment fraud was the most common scheme using cryptocurrency, and it recorded the most losses, with scammers stealing about $3.9 billion.
Last year, the FBI received a huge number of complaints about cryptocurrency investment fraud[/CENTER]
The FBI report said it received complaints from more than 200 countries, but most of the complaints and losses came from the United States.
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Tether, the issuer of the USDT stablecoin, has helped the US Department of Justice seize assets worth more than $6 million associated with crypto scammers from Southeast Asia.
Scammers operated under a "trust scheme", imitating legal platforms for digital currencies.
An FBI spokesman called such machinations "devastating" for thousands of Americans. Victims have lost "millions of dollars" in the hope of investment opportunities, often re-mortgaging their homes, he said.
«[…] The FBI will stop at nothing to find these crooks who aim to exploit the advantages of American society. Regardless of their location, we are using all our resources and cooperation with partners at home and abroad to prevent them from stealing people's hard-earned money," the statement said.
Tether noted that it has provided assistance to more than 180 law enforcement agencies in 45 jurisdictions over the entire time. In total, the company helped freeze approximately $1.8 billion, blocked 1850 wallets, and returned $128 million worth of assets to their rightful owners.
We are ready to cooperate with government agencies and provide all the necessary tools to bring attackers to justice and provide support to victims," said Paolo Ardoino, CEO of the company.
On September 26, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia reported that "one or more people" had lost millions of dollars as a result of the scam after being misled into believing they were investing in legitimate cryptocurrency ventures.
The FBI traced the stolen funds on the blockchain and found several cryptocurrency wallet addresses associated with the scam that still held over $6 million worth of victims' digital assets.
Tether says it helped authorities by freezing scammers' wallets, which contributed to the "rapid recovery" of the stolen cryptocurrency.
District of Columbia Attorney Matthew Graves said that "usually" scammers and their accounts are located overseas, making recovery difficult.
"In these scams, scammers trick U.S. citizens into believing that they are transferring funds into cryptocurrency investment opportunities, when in reality, they are just unwittingly handing over their money to scammers," he said.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia, victims of these scams are approached through a variety of means, such as redirected text messages, dating apps, and investment groups.
After gaining the trust of victims, scammers recommend cryptocurrency investments but direct them to investment platforms hosted on fraudulent websites that mimic legitimate ones.
Some of the scam platforms may offer lucrative returns and temporary withdrawals; Behind the scenes, all deposits are redirected to a wallet address controlled by the scammers.
Related: Cryptocurrency Founder Paid Los Angeles Police Officers to Help Victims Extort Cryptocurrency, FBI Claims FBI
Assistant Director of the FBI's Criminal Investigation Division, Chad Yarbrough, has stated that cryptocurrency investment scams like the one they just discovered are "devastating" and affect thousands of Americans every day.
"The FBI has seen victims lose millions of dollars, take out second and third mortgages on their homes, all in the hope of finding the next big investment opportunity", he said.
According to the FBI's 2023 Annual Cryptocurrency Scam Report, nearly 71% of reported cryptocurrency scams were related to investment schemes.
Investment fraud was the most common scheme using cryptocurrency, and it recorded the most losses, with scammers stealing about $3.9 billion.
Last year, the FBI received a huge number of complaints about cryptocurrency investment fraud[/CENTER]
The FBI report said it received complaints from more than 200 countries, but most of the complaints and losses came from the United States.
--------
Tether, the issuer of the USDT stablecoin, has helped the US Department of Justice seize assets worth more than $6 million associated with crypto scammers from Southeast Asia.
Scammers operated under a "trust scheme", imitating legal platforms for digital currencies.
An FBI spokesman called such machinations "devastating" for thousands of Americans. Victims have lost "millions of dollars" in the hope of investment opportunities, often re-mortgaging their homes, he said.
«[…] The FBI will stop at nothing to find these crooks who aim to exploit the advantages of American society. Regardless of their location, we are using all our resources and cooperation with partners at home and abroad to prevent them from stealing people's hard-earned money," the statement said.
Tether noted that it has provided assistance to more than 180 law enforcement agencies in 45 jurisdictions over the entire time. In total, the company helped freeze approximately $1.8 billion, blocked 1850 wallets, and returned $128 million worth of assets to their rightful owners.
We are ready to cooperate with government agencies and provide all the necessary tools to bring attackers to justice and provide support to victims," said Paolo Ardoino, CEO of the company.
