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Ten people have been charged as part of an investigation into cryptocurrency fraud, where one victim was left £300,000 out of pocket.
The arrests followed a series of coordinated search warrants across Kent, Essex and London.
The men and women were charged and remanded to court within 24 hours, as part of an investigation by the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit (ERSOU).
It is alleged the suspects were part of an organised crime group linked to a scam which involved phone calls to multiple victims, from people purporting to be police officers and cryptocurrency companies.
Victims are reported to have been tricked into sharing important security details, including seed phrases, before discovering funds stored in their crypto wallets had been stolen.
On Wednesday, April 29 officers from ERSOU’s Regional Organised Crime Unit (ROCU) forced entry to several addresses, during a series of simultaneous search warrants executed at 6am.
Arrests were made in areas including Chelmsford, Enfield in north London and at addresses in south London during extensive enforcement action.
This was aided by Kent Police, as well as officers from City of London Police and the Metropolitan Police.
Further help was provided by Yorkshire and Humber Regional Organised Crime Unit, whose officers detained a suspect in Wakefield.
All suspects were taken into custody and later charged with conspiracy to defraud.
Last Thursday (April 30) they were brought before Margate Magistrates Court.
Brandon Mingeli, 25, and Jami Durston-McDonnel, 28, both of New London Road, Chelmsford, and Louis Richards-Miller, 24, of Woolwich Road, Greenwich, London were remanded in custody until their next hearing at Chelmsford Crown Court on May 28.
Seven suspects were bailed by magistrates to attend the same crown court hearings.
Four were Joseph Umoru, 24, of Bostall Lane, Greenwich, London; Adedeji Kujore, 24, of Wharf Road, Chelmsford; plus Abdul-Azeem Taiwo Adeola Yusuf, 24, and Abdul-Azeez Kehinde Adeolu Yusuf, both of Kidbrooke Park Road, Greenwich, London.
The remaining three were Jayden Nakayama, 25, of Thornham Street, Greenwich, London: Samantha Gyabaa, 23, of Geffrye Court, Hackney, London, and Chijindu Andre Ujah, 32, of Gilda Avenue, Enfield.
A spokesperson for ERSOU said: “Police will never call you unexpectedly about your crypto or ask you to access your cold storage devices – this is a big red flag.
“Also, no legitimate company or police officer will ever ask for your seed phrase.”
ERSOU warns people to never click links sent via unsolicited emails or calls and never share or enter your password anywhere except directly on your cold storage device during setup or recovery.
It adds that if you receive a call claiming to be from police, verify it yourself. Call 101, after waiting five minutes to clear the line or call from a different phone.
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