As per recent information, a man from the Capital of New Zealand has been detained in the long going investigation by the Federal Bureau Investigation. The investigation is linked to a high profile crypto scam which was reportedly valued for $265 million.
The New Zealand police said in its briefing that the arrested man is among 13 people that have been detained from several places like Auckland, California, and Wellington.
Detained man from New Zealand is charged under federal law with severe charges of racketeering, conspiracy to commit fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Malicious actors used stolen funds to maintain their luxury
The information from the prosecutor’s notes indicates that the accused group has reportedly bought 9 luxury vehicles from the fund gained by tricking people.
It is worth noting that funds have also been used to buy luxury handbags, with clothes, watches, and hotels on rent in different locations at a higher cost.
However during his appearance in Auckland district court the accused was granted interim bail with next appearing to be held on July 03, 2025.
The police quotes in its statements, “ We have worked closely with our law enforcement colleagues in the United States in support of their investigation.”
Adding the enforcement unit said, “ Today’s search warrant and arrest reflect the importance of international partnerships where criminals are operating across borders.”
Experts say if scammers continue to trouble the crypto market with something similar, there are chances that it might hinder the long-term growth of digital assets.
Nevertheless there is a severe need to form a good set of rules and regulations for the crypto market in order to control the surging pace of these activities globally.
Crypto scams and hacks are growing at an unexpected pace
Hacks and frauds involving crypto have seriously harmed people’s finances. Malicious actors stole about $9.9 billion in 2024 alone, and if more bogus addresses are discovered, predictions indicate that this amount might increase to $12.4 billion.
Bybit hack accounted for $1.5 billion of the $1.77 billion that was stolen in the first quarter of 2025 among more than 60 instances, a 131% increase from the previous year.
A flaw in Phemex’s hot wallet technology caused the company to lose more than $85 million on January 23, 2025.
AdsPower’s distribution system was breached between January 21 and 24, 2025, resulting in the theft of $4.7 million in cryptocurrency by a rogue browser plugin that preyed on crypto wallets.
The Libra project, which was supported by well-known people, failed in Q1 2025 with losses of $100 million, igniting controversy.
The largest targets are decentralized banking platforms, which lost $27.07 million in March 2025 alone because of their open systems and smart contract vulnerabilities.
In a single week in May 2025, social engineering scams stole more than $45 million from Coinbase users.