How Brooklyn prosecutors and the FBI took down a massive crypto fraud network targeting Russian speakers

Brooklyn prosecutors and the FBI have seized or disrupted 241 websites and 112 servers tied to a crypto investment scam that allegedly stole tens of millions of dollars from Russian-speaking victims in the U.S.

The operation, carried out last week, came after a three-year investigation into a fraud network that relied on online infrastructure and IP addresses in Ukraine and other Eastern European countries, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said. No arrests were announced.

The scammers drew victims through Russian-language Facebook ads that promised investment opportunities. Fake advisers then called the victims and coached them to buy cryptocurrency and send it to fraudulent trading platforms.

When victims tried to withdraw their funds, the platforms locked their accounts or demanded more payments for supposed taxes and fees.

The scammers then “tried to exploit them again with false promises to recover their money,” Gonzalez said. Recovered data showed they contacted victims a few weeks after the initial fraud, offering to retrieve the stolen funds.

The DA’s Virtual Currency Unit had previously seized or disrupted 400 domains tied to crypto investment fraud, but replacement sites kept appearing.