Hung Yen provincial police arrested Thoai, 30, from Hai Phong, and eight others on 1/8/2025 for defrauding investors of over 2.6 trillion VND in a cryptocurrency scam.

The investigation revealed that around August 2024, Thoai contacted an anonymous group on Telegram to develop software for a cryptocurrency (USDT) project called Toptrade1, operating on the BO cryptocurrency exchange.

Confiscated evidence. Photo: Police provided

Thoai created e-wallets on the global cryptocurrency exchange binance.com to facilitate transactions with investors. He also recruited seven others to contribute funds and share responsibility for the project.

Thoai's group organized promotional events, created groups on Telegram and Facebook, and hosted livestreams to attract investors. They promised incredibly high returns to build trust.

The group flaunted fake diamond rings, expensive watches, and luxury car keys, creating images and videos depicting successful investments and substantial profits. They also used fake accounts to generate a fear of missing out (fomo) among potential victims. Once victims were financially depleted, the group would cut off contact.

While investor accounts displayed inflated profits, these were merely virtual and could not be withdrawn.

The suspects in the case. Photo: Police provided

The group quickly amassed a large number of registered accounts on their fraudulent platform. By the time of their arrest, the total value of cryptocurrency transactions on Thoai's platform reached 100 million USDT, equivalent to over 2.6 trillion VND.

During the arrests and searches, police seized two cars, 22 mobile phones, eight high-configuration computers, 116 SIM cards, over 200 million VND in cash, and froze 22 bank accounts. They also confiscated the fake jewelry, watches, and car keys used to deceive investors.