A 24-year-old law student living in Hengelo, Netherlands, has been arrested for running crypto scams that defrauded around 300 people of over $4.5 million. The arrest followed new evidence provided by a victim advocacy foundation. Another Ponzi Scheme The student, who had been hiding since his scheme collapsed last year, initially sought police protection after being harassed by investors. Authorities relocated him to a secure location, but investigators later found that he continued attracting new investors even as his scheme neared failure. Victims claim he ran a Ponzi scheme, requiring a minimum &euro5,000 investment and taking 50% of the profits. Legal experts are concerned about the scale of the alleged fraud, which is currently under investigation. Crypto Scams Surge Crypto-related fraudulent activities hit alarming levels in 2024, with losses totaling $2.3 billion, up 40% compared to 2023. Scammers have taken advantage of the influx of new investors driven by the ongoing bull market. Recent scams include fraudulent tokens linked to the Squid Game Netflix series , phishing attacks on Ledger users, and hacked social media accounts promoting fake tokens. AI-driven scams are also rising, as seen in Hong Kong, where a deepfake crypto romance scam led to 27 arrests and $46 million in losses.
