ZachXBT Recovers $275k in Crypto Stolen from Elderly Victim

Self-proclaimed blockchain investigator ZachXBT has recently facilitated the recovery of $275,000 in stolen crypto assets from an elderly Coinbase customer who fell victim to a social engineering crypto scam.

ZachXBT revealed that while investigating this fraud, they found evidence of over $5 million in additional stolen BTC and ETH related to the same alleged scam.

In April 2024 an elderly victim from the US was targeted by Indian call scammers posing as Coinbase support resulting in a large portion of their life savings stolen.

Pleased to share that I helped recover $275K which was recently seized and will be sent back to them.

Theft txn… pic.twitter.com/kJO7wMmtOl

— ZachXBT (@zachxbt) October 7, 2024

Details of the Investigation 

According to the pseudonymous crypto-security expert, the scammers are Indians who posed as Coinbase support staff, thus deceiving an elderly U.S. resident in the incident. They called the victim, targeting his life savings, and manipulated him into transferring about 15 BTC in April to a fraudulent account.

ZachXBT traced the stolen assets across multiple blockchain platforms and successfully recovered the funds. The on-chain sleuth also shared a screenshot confirming that U.S. authorities eventually seized the funds. According to Zach, the funds will be returned to the victim.

However, further investigation revealed that this incident was part of a pattern of crypto scams involving over $5 million stolen.

ZachXBT disclosed that the scammers laundered the funds to Tron through centralized exchanges, after which the stablecoins were transferred to over-the-counter (OTC) desks.

Rising Trend in Stolen Crypto Funds

While blockchain aims to decentralize finance and expand capital access, the industry has become a hotbed for bad actors. The recent incident unveiled by ZachXBT serves as a critical reminder of the risks associated with digital asset transactions, especially for less tech-savvy people.

A recent report by the analytics firm Chainalysis disclosed that illicit on-chain activity had dropped in the first two quarters of 2024 compared to the previous year. However, there has been a significant rise in stolen funds and ransomware.

The pseudonymous security investigator has dedicated time and expertise to addressing the ongoing issue, contributing to dozens of seizures, providing on-chain analysis, and tracking down stolen funds.

Last month, ZachXBT disclosed participation in an investigation with law enforcement that found individuals who stole $243 million worth of bitcoin from a Genesis creditor.