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The US department said it had intervened after identifying victims of romance and “pig butchering” scams involving crypto.
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The US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) reported that it had notified more than 4,300 individuals as part of an operation to prevent cryptocurrency investment fraud.
In a Feb. 13 notice, the FBI’s “Operation Level Up” said it had saved potential victims of crypto fraud roughly $285 million between January 2024 and January 2025. The bureau reported it had intervened after identifying victims in the middle of romance scams and “pig butchering” scams, notifying them of the fraud.
“As with many scams, criminals engaging in cryptocurrency investment fraud will instill a false sense of urgency or isolation,” said the notice. “The FBI encourages the public to resist acting quickly and to ‘Take A Beat’ — pause for a moment and assess the situation.”
According to the bureau, Americans lost more than $5 billion from crypto fraud in 2023, with many scams targeting the elderly. The FBI reported freezing $6 million in scammers’ crypto wallets in September, then seizing the assets.
Related: Crypto firm pleads guilty to wash trading FBI-made token
Chainalysis suggested that the number of crypto scams could surge in 2025, fuelled by the growth of artificial intelligence and sophisticated fraud. The FBI also issued a notice in December warning about “criminals generat[ing] content for fraudulent websites for cryptocurrency investment fraud and other investment schemes.”
The FBI was part of a 2024 effort with US authorities that created a fake token to lure market makers into illegal wash trading. The US Justice Department said in October that 18 individuals and entities faced charges from the sting operation.
Change in FBI leadership under Trump?
Brian Driscoll, who has been the acting FBI director since US President Donald Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration, could soon be replaced by former federal prosecutor Kash Patel.
This article first appeared at Cointelegraph.com News
