A UK teenager, Elliot Gunton, has been sentenced to three and a half years in prison for orchestrating a sophisticated phishing scam that stole over $900,000 from more than 500 Coinbase accounts. The 19-year-old hacker directed victims to fake login pages to capture their credentials. Gunton, who has a history of cybercrimes, pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit fraud and money laundering. This case highlights the growing threat of cybercrime in the cryptocurrency space.
In a separate case, a U.S. federal court has ordered Abner Alejandro Tinoco and his firm, Kikit and Mess Investments, to pay over $31 million for running fraudulent cryptocurrency and forex schemes. Tinoco deceived investors by promising returns while using the funds for personal luxury items, including a private jet. The court’s ruling includes $6.2 million in restitution, $6.2 million in disgorgement, and an $18.8 million civil penalty, underscoring the seriousness of the crime.
Meanwhile, the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions has issued a warning about Vims.One, a now-defunct crypto investment platform suspected of being fraudulent. Investors were misled into depositing funds with promises of high returns, only to find it difficult to retrieve their investments. The platform was linked to a nonprofit organization, the Miami Foundation, raising concerns about the use of charitable fronts in financial scams.
In Korea, authorities have arrested a man known as “Mr. A” for running a fake cryptocurrency mining operation, defrauding investors of over $1.3 million. The scheme promised monthly returns of 3-8% but was revealed to be a Ponzi scheme, with funds from new investors used to pay returns to earlier ones. The case serves as a cautionary tale about the risks of investing in unverified cryptocurrency ventures.
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