FBI agents in New York joined Brooklyn prosecutors in an October operation that disrupted an international crypto fraud ring, targeting 241 scam domains and involving 112 servers after a three-year investigation.
Investigators assessed the damage at tens of millions of dollars. Prosecutors recovered about $300,000 on victims’ behalf.
Russian-speaking communities were the network’s focus. Facebook ads written in Russian steered potential investors to fake crypto platforms. Some people who lost money later received another pitch promising to retrieve the funds. For some victims, the fraud consumed their entire savings.
The prosecutor’s virtual currency unit was led by Assistant District Attorney Alona Katz.
