US jails man for 5 years over $20m crypto fraud

An Indian national has been sentenced to five years in prison after being found guilty of stealing more than $20 million in a crypto fraud scheme involving fake crypto websites.

The US Department of Justice announced that US District Judge Kenneth D. Bell sentenced 31-year-old Indian citizen Chirag Tomar to 60 months in prison. Tomar will also be sentenced to two years of supervised release following his sentence.

His sentencing was the latest conviction in a series of similar fraud schemes.

Crypto scam via fake website

According to Dena J. King, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina, Tomar stole more than $20 million by directing hundreds of people to use fake or “spoofed” websites. The program extends until June 2021.

The prosecution stated that Tomar and his collaborators targeted victims worldwide and in the United States by impersonating the US-based crypto exchange Coinbase.

Spoofing is a cybercrime in which a malicious actor disguises himself to trick victims into thinking they are using an official or trusted individual; However, this is actually fake. In this case, Tomar and others used the fake URL of Coinbase’s crypto exchange site “Pro.Coinbase.Com.” They used the CoinbasePro.Com URL along with a fake website that allowed unsuspecting victims to unwittingly allow cybercriminals to access their authentication details at Coinbase.

Fraudsters stole money from victims using remote desktop software; In some cases, impersonation of Coinbase customer support staff was also involved.

Court documents reveal that a crypto user in North Carolina lost more than $240,000 in February 2022.

Tomar, who used the stolen money to buy luxury vehicles and finance lavish trips to Dubai and other destinations, was arrested in December 2023. He pleaded guilty in May 2024 to charges including wire fraud conspiracy.

Earlier this week, a court in the US sentenced a 46-year-old man to 20 years in prison for crypto fraud.

Meanwhile, a German man facing a $150 million crypto fraud case in New York is on the run after missing a hearing.