New York's attorney general alleged on Thursday that text message scammers who advertised fake job offers defrauded several people of $2.2 million in crypto assets.
The lawsuit, filed by Attorney General Letitia James's office, targets seven alleged victims in Queens and Nassau counties, as well as two in Virginia and Florida, in connection with a cryptocurrency-based scheme. They each lost anywhere from a few thousand dollars to more than $300,000.
One victim said he was “going to die” after losing his meager savings to the scam, according to court documents.
Another victim called it a “never-ending nightmare,” the application states.
The AG's office said the twisted scheme ran for at least six months, from January to June last year, with the scammers forcing their victims to follow the same tactics regardless of where they lived.
Scammers start by sending unsolicited text messages from spoofed numbers about great remote work opportunities with high pay and flexible hours.
Victims who responded were told that live would require them to review the product online. But first, they were told to open a cryptocurrency account, or online wallet, and maintain a certain balance to cover the value of the name brand product they were going to review.
“The victims were convinced that they were not purchasing products and that maintaining account balances would help 'legitimize' the data they were generating,” the lawsuit states. has been done.
According to court documents, the scammers created fake companies with names such as Digistore24, CultureFit Technology, FeraAI, Birdeye, Summit Digital Marketing, Diverse Staffing, Page Zero Media, Work Source Inc., and Sachs Marketing Group to create fraudulent The company claims to have represented a temporary staffing agency.
“It is cruel and unacceptable to defraud New Yorkers who are trying to earn money to support their families by taking on remote work,” said James, who filed the lawsuit in Queens Supreme Court.
“Scammers sent New Yorkers text messages promising high-paying, flexible jobs, tricked them into purchasing virtual currency, and then stole it.”
Commissions were promised based on the value of products reviewed through fake websites set up for the operation, and fake user accounts even displayed fake earnings.
In the end, the victim receives an auspicious notification that a bulk review of high-value products will be conducted, which implies that they will also receive a high commission fee.
According to the complaint, victims were pushed to their financial limits through advances, bank loans, and loans from friends and family, as they were pressured to consider more valuable products and reach a supposed “withdrawal point.” It is said that
For example, a 39-year-old man from India who lives in Queens used his credit card to purchase cryptocurrencies and borrowed “more than $12,000 from friends and family, including Indian nationals,” according to the complaint.
He lost more than $58,000, and many others lost more, the AG's office said.
A Florida woman who was ensnared by text messages deposited more than $300,000 into her online wallet in just 20 days, according to the complaint.
One Queens teacher, referred to in court documents as “Mel,” lost more than $100,000 in seven weeks, court documents say.
According to the complaint, the scammers asked them to deposit thousands of dollars more in virtual currency to review more products or withdraw their false earnings, ultimately depleting their personal bank account balances. It is said that the figure dropped to minus $84.
Mel told the scammers, “I can't even pay the rent,'' and repeatedly told them that she couldn't pay any more.
But before he can withdraw his earnings, he receives a notification that he must complete 10 more product reviews and deposit more than $100,000 in virtual currency into his online wallet, according to details in the lawsuit. That's what it means.
“Mel was in shock and responded that she was 'shaking' and that she was 'almost dying' and needed to 'go to the ER,'” the suit states.
To maintain Mel's confidence, the scammers allegedly told her that they were lucky enough to negotiate a deal and that all she needed was $44,000 to clear her debt. .
The 31-year-old teacher took out a $30,000 bank loan and also borrowed money from friends, desperate to extract what would eventually be her income.
In total, Mel lost nearly $120,000 to the scam, according to James' office.
Another Queens resident, a 28-year-old woman from India who goes by the pseudonym “June,” had her entire life savings of $6,250 wiped out by scammers.
After transferring the last of her money and a cash advance from her credit card, June begged a scammer named Alexander to allow her to withdraw her supposed earnings.
Instead, he asked her for an additional $12,000.
“June knew she wouldn't be able to meet that amount and immediately told Alexander that she was going to die,” the suit says.
“The fact that Defendants stole whatever money June had was the only reason June was not further defrauded,” the complaint alleges.
The joint investigation by James' office, the Queens District Attorney, and the U.S. Secret Service identified numerous cryptocurrency wallets controlled by fraudsters with nearly $2.2 million in stolen funds.
Those accounts have been frozen, and the lawsuit seeks penalties and permanent suspensions for scammers sending unsolicited text messages in New York, as well as a court order to recover and return the stolen money.
Since only cryptocurrency wallets are identified, anonymous owners will receive services in an unprecedented way by depositing non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in the wallet and linking it to the petition, the AG said. the office said.
Ms. James said New Yorkers who believe they may have been involved in a text message scam should contact her office to file a complaint.
