Authorities have closed down a sizable cryptocurrency crime gang from Cyprus. This body was tricking investors by claiming the issuance of a non-existing cryptocurrency similar to other recent scandals in the area.
Europol stated that between December 2017 and February 2018, the criminals set up a fake online trading company, falsely promoting a new cryptocurrency. The scam was run at the time of the initial coin offering (ICO) and it was at least 10 million tokens with the payments in Bitcoin and Ethereum accepted. They lied, saying that they have a specific algorithm that can be used to improve their software, fooling investors into thinking this project is feasible.
Europol didn’t disclose the identities of team members or the algorithm’s manual to the public, keeping its usage and the people behind it hidden . In February 2018, after the funds were accumulated, the scammers deactivated all social media related to the project and the company’s website was shut down. The number of people who lost their investments to one of these fraudulent organizations remains unknown, and investigations are still ongoing. This joint operation between Austria, Cyprus, and Czech Republic, had a team of six Austrians arrested, and where 500,000 euros, in cryptocurrencies, 250,000 euros, in cash, and luxury assets were seized.
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