Federal authorities are working to return over $8.2 million in seized cryptocurrency to victims of an investment fraud scheme that targeted individuals across multiple states. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio has filed a civil complaint seeking forfeiture of 8,207,578 tether (USDT), which was recovered through an FBI investigation into fraudulent schemes. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) explained in a Feb. 28 announcement that, according to court documents:

The FBI has identified 33 victims of an investment fraud scheme across the country … In total, victims lost approximately $4.9 million.

“Five more accounts have also been found to be affected and the FBI is attempting to identify the respective owners. The victims associated with the additional accounts have lost approximately $1,071,086,” the DOJ added.

Investigators determined that scammers initially gained victims’ trust through deceptive text messages before persuading them to invest in fraudulent cryptocurrency platforms. One of the victims, a woman from Lake County, Ohio, lost her entire life savings of $663,352 after being manipulated by a scammer posing as a friend. She was guided to open a cryptocurrency account on Crypto.com and was convinced to transfer funds to what she believed was a legitimate investment platform. When she attempted to withdraw her money, she was met with fabricated tax demands and threats against her family.

After realizing the scam, she reported the fraud to the FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center, prompting an investigation by the FBI’s Cleveland Division. Blockchain analysis traced portions of the stolen funds to three cryptocurrency addresses, leading federal authorities to seize the USDT tokens in November 2024. The funds were transferred to a law enforcement-controlled wallet with the assistance of Tether Limited.

Through the forfeiture complaint filed on Feb. 27, the U.S. government seeks legal authority to redistribute the seized cryptocurrency to the victims. The DOJ noted:

If successful in this forfeiture action, the United States would seek to return the stolen funds to the victims.

The complaint asserts that additional funds held in the fraudulent accounts were proceeds of financial crimes and should also be forfeited. While the claims in the complaint must still be proven in court, the Justice Department stressed that the ultimate goal of the action is to return the stolen assets to those who were defrauded.

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