Brooklyn prosecutors and the FBI have shut down 241 websites linked to cryptocurrency scams that stole tens of millions of dollars from Americans. The operation followed a three-year investigation into a fraud network operating across national borders.
Authorities seized 112 servers from hosting providers in the United States and Eastern Europe last week, disrupting the infrastructure supporting the scams.
FBI Traces Scams to Eastern Europe
The Brooklyn District Attorney’s Virtual Currency Unit worked with the FBI’s New York field office to trace the network to Ukraine and neighboring countries. Some victims were Russian-speaking Americans who encountered the schemes through Facebook investment ads.
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District Attorney Eric Gonzalez said investigators traced stolen cryptocurrency, identified suspected scammers and seized the systems supporting the operation. Assistant District Attorney Alona Katz said the action had “disabled the back end of the operation.”
Crypto Fraud Losses Continue to Rise
Gonzalez established the Virtual Currency Unit in 2023 to investigate cryptocurrency scams targeting Brooklyn’s Russian-speaking communities. In 2024, the unit seized 70 domains linked to scams that caused about $5 million in losses.
The latest operation brings the number of domains disrupted by the unit to more than 400. FBI figures show reported cryptocurrency fraud losses reached $11.4 billion in 2025, up 22% from the previous year.
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