- U.S. charges a Moroccan man for stealing NFs worth $448K on OpenSea.
- The culprit employed sophisticated schemes to steal user seed phrases.
- The accused could be sentenced to a maximum of 20 years behind bars.
U.S. prosecutors have charged a Moroccan individual named Soufiane Oulahyane for his alleged involvement in a significant crypto and NFT heist.
Oulahyane stands accused of orchestrating a sophisticated scheme, and having stolen a staggering $448,923 worth of digital assets, including two highly sought-after Bored Apes, by creating a deceptive replica of the renowned OpenSea digital marketplace.
According to the Department of Justice, Oulahyane established a fraudulent website to deceive unsuspecting victims into divulging their seed phrases, a sequence of random words to unlock crypto wallets, enabling the perpetrator to gain illicit access to authentic OpenSea accounts.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams emphasized the adaptability of Oulahyane, remarking that he had effectively repurposed the age-old technique of creating fake websites and deployed it in the rapidly evolving crypto space.
Notably, Oulahyane faces charges relating to crypto theft from an unidentified victim residing in New York. He is accused of successfully offloading 39 NFTs, including an alluring cartoon ape donning a sailor cap while puffing on a cigar and depicting a robotic dog.
The government’s investigation revealed that Oulahyane employed a clever tactic by purchasing sponsored links on an undisclosed search engine. Prospective users who clicked these links were unwittingly redirected to a fake website resembling the OpenSea login page.
According to prosecutors, the victim shelled out 9.88 Ether, equivalent to approximately $18,700, for the ape, and 1.789 Ether, totaling $3,400, for the captivating robotic dog.
Oulahyane now faces a four-count charge, including wire fraud, use of an unauthorized access device, aggravated identity theft, and utilizing an access device to steal a minimum of $1,000. If found guilty of the fraud charges, he could be sentenced to a maximum of 20 years behind bars per the U.S. prosecutor.
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