CLEVELAND, Ohio — A Solon man lost $500,000 in a massive online cryptocurrency scheme that has bilked people out of $5.8 billion across the globe, according to federal prosecutors.
The Solon man was about to invest another $1.5 million in an investment before the FBI stepped in and told the man about the scam, according to court records.
Prosecutors on Monday asked a judge to sign off on authorities’ seizure of $679,981 from the bitcoin giant Tether so it can be returned to investors.
FBI agents in Cleveland have been probing the scheme for months and have already seized $9.3 million in stablecoin that was laundered through Tether.
The scheme involves people from overseas— China, Cambodia and Myanmar, often with forced labor from human trafficking victims — who text, email or link up with people via social media. Scammers then strike up conversations and dangle the prospect of making big money through an investment opportunity.
Prosecutors wrote in court records the investigation has expanded in recent months and authorities now believe the scam has cost tens of thousands of people $5.8 billion.
That includes a Mentor woman who lost $652,000, an Elyria husband and wife who lost $400,000 and an Ashtabula man who lost $200,000, according to court records.
Assistant U.S. Attorney James Morford wrote in filings that scammers first contacted the Solon man on July 22, 2024, through LinkedIn. The person, who claimed to be a Stanford graduate and worked at Mucker Capital, told the man that her friend had hooked her up with an investment that made her money.
The man later messaged with the person’s “friend” on What’sApp, a messaging app, and sent the person $500,000 to invest, court records say.
He requested a portion of his investment back and got it, court records say. Believing the investment was legitimate, he planned to send another $1.5 million, court records say.
The FBI on July 30, 2024, called the man and told him he may be a victim of a scam. The man told agents he was going to send another $200,000 the next day.
The man then contacted the person he messaged with on What’sApp and the scammer mocked him, according to court records.
Among the messages the scammer sent included: “You’re a good pig, just not fat enough. But thank you for giving me half of your savings” and “Glad to use your life savings,” according to court records.
The FBI also found that an Arizona woman lost $63,000 to the scam after someone contacted her through the dating app Coffee Meets Bagel.
Agents tracked the money through a web of cryptocurrency wallets and ultimately found the money, according to court records.
