An International Scheme of Fictitious Crypto-Investments Uncovered in Odesa

• The organizers disguised the fraud as investments in cryptocurrency and traffic arbitrage.
• More than 1,500 people became victims, and the damage is estimated in the millions.
• Eight participants have been detained and face up to 12 years in prison.

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Police in Odesa region together with the Department of Cybercrime of Ukraine exposed a criminal network operating under the guise of crypto investment business. The attackers offered investments through fictitious online platforms, and the funds received were transferred to addresses controlled by them.

According to investigators, the number of victims exceeds 1,500 people, among them foreign citizens.

Investigators found that a 28-year-old resident of Odesa attracted a group of accomplices to the scheme. They included an IT specialist who developed and administered the websites of fictitious companies and call centers, from which “employees” persuaded victims to invest.

The names of the companies were regularly changed to disguise their activities. In addition, investors were shown personal accounts with fake dividends.

In reality, the money invested went straight to the cryptocurrency wallets of the organizers. From 2024 to 2025, more than 24 million hryvnias passed through one of these addresses. Access keys were not tied to known exchanges, which made it difficult to track transfers, the police said.

The international nature of the crime prompted the creation of a joint investigative team of Ukraine and Kazakhstan. In the course of searches with the involvement of special units seized evidence of the network. At this stage, the damage to $92,000 from seven investors from Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Kyrgyzstan and other countries has been documented.

Eight members of the group have been detained, and one more is wanted. All of them are suspected of fraud committed by prior conspiracy under martial law and on a particularly large scale.

According to part 5 of article 190 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine, the accused face up to 12 years in prison with confiscation of property.

We shall remind you that the FBI promised $10m for a Ukrainian hacker involved in attacks on global companies.