Five men have been arrested after a large-scale cryptocurrency investment fraud scheme conned thousands of victims.
Millions of pounds were stolen through several websites that claim to offer pre-sale investment opportunities in new cryptocurrencies, a police probe found.
Victims were promised the cryptocurrencies would provide significant returns – often 100 per cent or more – on the basis that the tokens would be listed on major exchanges.
However, police found that these websites rarely have any intention to list them on exchange websites, and returns in cash are impossible to guarantee.
Some of these websites have previously operated under different domain names, making them harder to track and increasing the risk to investors.
A ‘boiler room’ operation, based in London, is suspected of making follow-up calls to victims to encourage further investment.
Losses are believed to have run into millions of pounds and affected thousands in the capital and the rest of the UK.
The arrests took place at several addresses across London on Wednesday, October 1.
Five men, aged between 21 and 37, have been arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit fraud and taken into custody for questioning
The five men, aged between 21 and 37, were arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to commit fraud and taken into custody for questioning.
They have since been bailed pending further enquiries.
Detective Sergeant Stephen Bourne, from the Metropolitan Police Service, said: ‘We recognise the devastating impact that fraud can have on people and that’s why we’re committed to investigating crimes of this nature and supporting those affected.
‘These websites are highly convincing and use professional-looking content, fake endorsements and aggressive marketing tactics to lure people in.
‘Once cryptocurrency is sent, it is almost impossible to recover.
‘If you have any doubts, please do not invest.
‘Though we are still very much in the early stages of the investigation, we believe this crime is affecting victims in every corner of the world and strongly advise members of the public not to engage with or invest through the websites listed.’
The Met urges anyone considering investing in cryptocurrency to carry out thorough research and check the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) warning list before parting with any cryptocurrency.