New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced that her office took action to stop a fraudulent cryptocurrency investment scam that targeted hundreds of Russian-speaking New Yorkers in Brooklyn and across the country. A joint investigation by the Office of the Attorney General (OAG), the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office, and the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS), found that Vietnam-based scammers defrauded victims by luring them with deceptive social media ads in Russian that claimed big returns on cryptocurrency and other investments. The scammers convinced more than a hundred victims to purchase cryptocurrency and invest it into fake trading platforms, then stole the victims’ assets and disappeared. After learning of the investigation, Meta shut down more than 700 accounts associated with an advertiser promoting the scam. The OAG secured a court order freezing $300,000 worth of cryptocurrency linked to the scammers, and the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office seized an additional $140,000 worth of cryptocurrency.
“Hundreds of New York investors thought they were putting their hard-earned money in safe, high-return investments, only to be defrauded out of millions of dollars,” said Attorney General James. “These scammers targeted Russian speakers on Facebook with enticing ads and my office, together with DFS and the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office, took action to stop these scammers and protect New Yorkers. I urge all New Yorkers to be vigilant of online cryptocurrency investment ads.”
“As crypto scams continue to proliferate, it is crucial for law enforcement agencies to work together in order to stop them,” said Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez. “That’s what happened in this case, with the fraudulent network being shut down, victims warned to stop investing, and some of the stolen money getting recovered. I am grateful for the partnership with the Attorney General’s Office and the Department of Financial Services that led to this successful outcome. My office will continue to investigate every reported scam in Brooklyn and to educate residents about how to protect themselves from these dangerous frauds.”…