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Chirag Tomar, a citizen of India, received a five-year prison sentence on Thursday for masterminding a multi-million dollar cryptocurrency fraud by establishing counterfeit Coinbase websites.
Chirag Tomar Faces Consequences for Crypto Fraud
As stated in a press release dated October 17 from the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of North Carolina, U.S. District Judge Kenneth D. Bell also imposed a two-year supervised release period on the now-convicted 31-year-old.
Legal documents reveal that Tomar, along with unidentified accomplices, embezzled over $20 million in a prolonged digital asset scheme that commenced in 2021 by setting up multiple fraudulent websites with similar URLs designed to mislead Coinbase users, effectively “spoofing” the cryptocurrency exchange.
Tomar stole over $37M in crypto from Coinbase users using fake websites, impostor reps, remote desktop software, and phone scams to get 2FA codes. Victim? DM us.https://t.co/gYjNRo8DMG pic.twitter.com/jreXow1Jog
— Max Dilendorf (@MaxDilendorf) May 29, 2024
“Once victims entered their login details into the counterfeit website, an authentication process was initiated,” the press release states. “In certain cases, victims were deceived into providing their login and authentication details for the genuine Coinbase website to the fraudsters.”
In other situations, victims were misled into permitting fake Coinbase representatives to run remote desktop software, allowing fraudsters to take control of victims’ computers and access their authentic Coinbase accounts.
Moreover, Tomar and his accomplices impersonated Coinbase representatives over the phone to defraud victims of their funds.
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Once the crypto fraudsters gained access to the customers’ accounts, they would transfer the stolen funds back into wallets under their control.
Counterfeit Coinbase Fraudsters Deplete Millions From Victims’ Wallets
In one case, a victim in the Western District of North Carolina lost $240,000 after a fraudulent Coinbase representative informed him that his account had been locked.
Tomar would then move the cryptocurrencies across “hundreds” of different wallets under his control, which experienced inflows totaling tens of millions of dollars.
The digital asset fraudster would ultimately convert the value of the tokens into cash and distribute the proceeds among the scammers.
Authorities report that Tomar and his accomplices utilized customer funds to sustain a “lavish lifestyle,” acquiring expensive watches, luxury vehicles, and traveling abroad.
Tomar was apprehended in December 2023 and entered a guilty plea to wire fraud conspiracy in May 2024. This charge carries a potential sentence of up to twenty years.
He has not yet been assigned to a federal correctional facility where he will serve his sentence.
The post U.S. Sentences Crypto Fraudster To 5 Years In Prison For Coinbase Scheme appeared first on Cryptonews.
