UK detectives seize $9.5 million in Ethereum in suspected cryptocurrency scam

Detectives in the United Kingdom have reportedly seized a USB drive containing $9.5 million in Ethereum (ETH) that was stolen via a cryptocurrency scam.

Manchester Police (GMP) said in a statement that specialist officers from its Economic Crime Team recovered the USB drive after tracking down two alleged operators of the fake savings and trading service.

The scam targeted victims in the UK, US, Europe, China, and Australia, who deposited their money and life savings into fake accounts using the smart contract platform Binance Smart Chain. The suspects shut down their website after receiving a large amount of funds from the victims, and then transferred the funds into their accounts. After discovering multiple USB flash drives, the police seized a sum of $22.25 million.

A few days later, police found a "crypto safe" and the code to access it, and found another $12.7 million, which was equivalent to 90% of the stolen cryptocurrency.