By George Ward
Crypto-related scams have been rising over the past few years, with investors losing millions of dollars in digital assets to scammers. The South Korean police are investigating a possible scam that targeted 40 investors after being deceived into buying some non-existent crypto tokens.
Buying Non-Existing Tokens
According to the South Korean law enforcement body, the case was filed by the investors’ legal representatives from the Seoul-based law firm, “For You Law.” The law enforcement agency alleged that the scammers attempted to defraud the victims by posing as “loss compensation officials” who cater to investors who lost their fortunes to digital asset frauds.
Furthermore, the group reportedly told the individuals that they could recoup their assets from the failed investments after purchasing their token called “Epay Coin.” As stated by the enforcement agency, the fraudulent group claimed that the individuals could access the Epay Coin via a private sale.
The group added that investors should expect high returns once the token is listed. The prosecutors stressed that the individuals behind the Epay Coin told the unsuspecting victims that the token was on the verge of being listed on several big crypto exchanges like Binance, Bithumb, Upbit, and Huobi.
However, the enforcement body stated that only 40 victims filed a complaint about the scam, and it is possible that are hundreds of such investors tricked into buying the Epay Coin. Thus, they might be part of the $8 million believed to be the total sum of the fraud.
According to the prosecutor’s report, the 40 investors have a combined loss of $1.6 million to the ongoing scam.
Searching For The Masterminds
As revealed by the local news outlet Chosun Ilbo, it has attempted to contact the Epay Coin developers by calling the phone number printed on their business cards. But it is still waiting for a response.
In addition, the media outlet also attempted to visit the group’s physical office, which they claimed is located in the affluent Seoul Yeouido District and occupies all 12 floors of a commercial building. At the said location, a facility manager told them that the building was rented out to several firms that carry out their operations there.
According to Kim Kyung-Nam, a legal counsel at the Forma Law Firm, the Epay Coin operators approached the victims who had already lost a fortune in previous crypto scams pledging to help them recover their monies.
Kim added that such fraud cases relating to digital assets have been on the rise. The lawyer advises the public to record telephone conversations when agreeing to invest in crypto firms to help prosecutors get to the root of the issue.
South Korean law enforcement agencies are reported to have heavily invested in sophisticated tracking tools to help them fight the fast-rising crypto-related crimes in the country.