The Cyber Police of Ukraine arrested a 23-year-old resident of the Kyiv region in Sumy, who is suspected of creating a fraudulent cryptocurrency exchange. The damages caused by his actions are estimated at over 7.6 million hryvnias, equivalent to approximately $183,000.
This is reported by Business • Media
Large-Scale Fraud Scheme with a Fake Exchange
According to the Cyber Police Department of the National Police of Ukraine, the arrested individual used administrative rights to manipulate the balances of investors’ accounts. He created the illusion of cryptocurrency movement, convincing victims that they had indeed purchased cryptocurrency.
One of the victims was a resident of Sumy, whom the suspect persuaded to register on the counterfeit platform and transfer $60,000 for an alleged purchase of bitcoins. Later, the fraudster contacted the victim again and offered to buy another BTC for $100,000. During the attempt to transfer the second sum of money, law enforcement apprehended the criminal, seizing his mobile phone and a Lexus car.
Liability and Further Actions of the Investigation
The suspect currently faces up to 15 years in prison with asset confiscation under the law for fraud in particularly large amounts.
“In Sumy, law enforcement apprehended a 23-year-old resident of Kyiv region who created a fake cryptocurrency exchange. The damage from his actions is estimated at 7.6 million hryvnias (about $183,000).”
It is worth noting that earlier in Zaporizhzhia, a hacker was arrested on suspicion of hacking international companies and illegal cryptocurrency mining.