Singaporean national Malone Lam has been charged with stealing over 4,100 BTC, worth approximately $274 million, from a private investor in the United States. Lam and his co-conspirator, Jeandiel Serrano, allegedly executed a sophisticated social engineering scheme to gain unauthorized access to the victim's accounts. They posed as Google support staff and convinced the victim that his account had been compromised. They then persuaded the victim to transfer approximately $3 million in crypto to a wallet under their control. The stolen funds were laundered through various crypto exchanges, with Lam going on an extravagant spending spree. Lam and Serrano face charges of wire fraud and money laundering, with potential sentences of up to 20 years in prison. This case highlights the vulnerabilities and growing threat of social engineering attacks in the crypto industry.
- Content Editor ( cryptoslate.com )
- 2024-10-24
Scammer who stole 4,100 Bitcoin appears in US court charged with wire fraud