€100 million cryptocurrency scam uncovered across 23 countries
Five suspects were arrested and assets frozen during coordinated searches in Spain, Portugal, Italy, Romania, and Bulgaria. Investigators say the scheme, which diverted victim funds to Lithuania, has been operating across 23 countries since at least 2018.
Police across Europe have arrested five suspects in a cross-border operation coordinated by Eurojust that targeted an online cryptocurrency investment scam defrauding victims of at least €100 million.
The arrests, which included the alleged main organizer, took place during a joint action day that also saw searches conducted and bank accounts and other assets frozen in Spain, Portugal, Italy, Romania, and Bulgaria, Eurojust said Wednesday.
The suspected organizer is under investigation for large-scale fraud and money laundering. Authorities said the scheme lured investors onto professionally designed platforms promising high returns from cryptocurrencies. Instead, much of the money was diverted to bank accounts in Lithuania. When victims tried to withdraw their funds, they were told to pay additional fees, and the websites would disappear, leaving them with partial or total losses.
"Cryptocurrency investment schemes are a common fraud typology," said Dr. Tom Robinson, Co-Founder and Chief Scientist at Elliptic. "Investors should be very wary of any such scheme, especially if it has been recommended by someone they’ve met through social media or a messaging app."
Such scams often don’t actually involve cryptocurrency at all, he explained.
"Fraudsters sometimes just use the concept of cryptocurrency investment, since it combines technical complexity with the perception that there are easy gains to be made — a potent combination. However, in these cases, cryptocurrencies might subsequently be used by the scammers to launder their illicit proceeds," Robinson told OCCRP.
Eurojust said the fraud has been active since at least 2018, spanning 23 countries either as victim locations or as jurisdictions used to move illicit proceeds. The agency helped set up a joint investigation team between Spain and Lithuania to enable information sharing, and coordinated European Arrest Warrants, Investigation Orders, and freezing orders.
Europol, which has supported national investigators since September 2020, joined the action day and deployed a cryptocurrency specialist to Portugal to assist with asset seizures.
World Affairs Correspondent
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