U.S. DoJ Seizes $112M Tied to Accounts Used by Crypto Scammers

Authorities have scored a major win in the fight against criminal elements who use knowledge of the crypto space to con unsuspecting users of their assets using confidence scams.

Per an April 3 announcement by the U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ), six virtual currency accounts tied to crypto investment scams have been confiscated. These accounts hold about $112 million worth of digital assets.

According to the details of the announcement, all of these accounts were used to launder stolen funds from a type of crypto scam known as “pig butchering.” Perpetrators of this kind of scam carefully build relationships with their unsuspecting victims online using social networks, dating websites, and other similar modes of communication. 

Afterward, the scammers lure their victims into investing in fake crypto platforms with a promise of huge returns on investments. These invested sums are then siphoned into wallet addresses belonging to these bad actors. Although the agency did not reveal the identities of the owners of the seized accounts, the seizure warrants were authorized by judges in states including Arizona, Idaho, and California.

DoJ to Return Stolen Funds to Victims

Fortunately for victims of this type of attack, Kenneth A. Polite Jr. the assistant general of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division has pledged to return the funds to victims of the scams.

In addition, Polite also noted that the agency intends to intensify efforts in educating users and raising public awareness regarding these scams. He also encouraged users to be particularly careful when dealing with investments regarding cryptocurrencies.

 Undoubtedly, this news will be welcomed by the several hundreds of people who have fallen prey to such scams. It will also in a considerable measure restore investors’ hope about the security of the space.

The agency has planned to use all the tools at its disposal to continue to disrupt these scam activities and deprive the criminal organizations of their ill-gotten gains as well as take down infrastructures employed by these scammers.

Recall that in September last year, the U.S. DoJ established a dedicated unit comprising over 150 federal prosecutors tasked with curbing the use of cryptocurrencies in crimes including money laundering, terrorism financing, and other illegal activities associated with cryptocurrencies. Regulators have also doubled up on regulations on the industry after leaving it to develop unchecked for years.