By Kyle Baird
Chirag Tomar was sentenced to five years in prison on Thursday in North Carolina for his involvement in a $20 million cryptocurrency scam that exploited fake Coinbase websites.
Along with his co-conspirators, Tomar created spoofed sites that closely mimicked the legitimate Coinbase exchange, tricking victims into providing their login credentials and two-factor authentication codes. This information allowed the fraudsters to access victims’ accounts and transfer their cryptocurrency to wallets they controlled.
One victim reportedly lost over $240,000 to Tomar’s scheme. The stolen funds funded Tomar’s lavish lifestyle, featuring luxury cars and watches. He was arrested in December 2023 upon entering the U.S. and pleaded guilty to wire fraud conspiracy in May 2024.
As crypto scams grow increasingly sophisticated in 2024, billions are funneled into illicit operations. According to Chainalysis, 43% of scam inflows this year have gone to wallets that became active only in 2024. Scammers are shortening the duration of their operations, utilizing on-chain and off-chain tools, fake domains, and social media accounts to deceive victims rapidly. This enables them to quickly drain funds and disperse them across multiple wallets, complicating tracking efforts by authorities.