Love and Crypto: The $9.2 Million Deception

• A man in Minnesota was swindled out of $9.2 million in a series of 21 cryptocurrency transactions.
• The scammer, posing as a woman, initially reached out to the victim via LinkedIn, promising high returns on crypto investments.
• The scammer also convinced the man to divorce his wife and continued to manipulate him emotionally until he had drained his savings.

A Minnesota man was conned out of $9.2 million in a cryptocurrency scam that involved emotional manipulation and false promises of high returns. The scammer, who initially contacted the victim via LinkedIn, also convinced him to divorce his wife.

Man Loses $9.2 Million in Cryptocurrency Scam

In a shocking case of fraud, a man from Minnesota was duped out of $9.2 million in a series of 21 transactions. The victim, whose identity has not been revealed, willingly transferred amounts ranging from $100,000 to $2 million to the scammer. The transactions took place over a period of six months, from December to June.

Scammer Manipulates Victim via LinkedIn

The fraudster initially contacted the victim via LinkedIn, a social media platform predominantly used by professionals. Posing as a woman, the scammer promised high returns on cryptocurrency investments. Over time, the scammer began to manipulate the victim emotionally, eventually convincing him to divorce his wife.

Victim Drains Savings to Fund Scammer’s Scheme

The victim, who had been convinced to divorce his wife, transferred his life savings to the scammer without informing his wife. By June, the total amount transferred had reached $9.2 million. The victim believed that the money was being invested in a fund named “Coinrule-web3.” The scammer began sending the victim money, purportedly as high-interest returns, further convincing him of the scheme’s legitimacy.

Conclusion

The scam came to light when the victim’s wife discovered that their savings accounts had been drained over the past six months. She reported the matter to the police. The victim attempted to withdraw all his profits, but the scammer demanded an additional payment of $2.8 million. When the victim failed to make this payment, the scammer disappeared. The state attorney general, Keith Ellison, stated that this was the largest cryptocurrency scam the state had ever seen.