Olympic Sprinter Can't Outrun Charges in UK Crypto Fraud Investigation
U.K. police charged British sprinter CJ Ujah in an alleged crypto fraud scheme involving wallet seed phrase theft and impersonation calls.
British sprinter CJ Ujah has been charged in the U. K. for his alleged role in a cryptocurrency fraud operation that police say targeted victims through impersonation scams designed to steal funds from crypto wallets.
On Thursday, the U. K. Regional Organized Crime Units (ROCUs) said 10 people were charged with conspiracy to defraud following coordinated raids across Kent, Essex, London, and Wakefield on April 29.
“It is alleged the suspects were part of an organized crime group linked to a scam which involved phone calls to multiple victims, from people purporting to be police officers and cryptocurrency companies,” the agency said in a statement. Police said victims were tricked into sharing seed phrases and other private wallet recovery details before discovering their cryptocurrency had been stolen. While UK authorities did not mention which crypto assets were stolen, one victim allegedly lost more than £300,000.
<span data-mce-type="bookmark" style="width: 0px;overflow: hidden;line-height: 0" class="mce_SELRES_start"></span> Seed phrases function as recovery keys for many cryptocurrency wallets. Anyone with access to the phrase can restore the wallet and transfer its funds, making them a frequent target in phishing and impersonation scams. All 10 suspects appeared in court on April 30.