Indian National Admits to $9.5 Million Theft from Coinbase Users

A 30-year-old Indian national, Chirag Tomar, has confessed to charges of creating a fake website of the cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase and stealing $9.5 million in digital assets. This was reported by CoinDesk, citing court documents.

On December 20, 2023, Tomar arrived in the United States on a tourist visa to visit family but was arrested at Atlanta airport. He was charged with conspiracy to commit fraud and money laundering. Both charges carry a maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison.

According to court documents, from at least June 2021 to December 2023, Tomar and his accomplices stole cryptocurrency from 542 victims through a spoofed version of Coinbase Pro.

The indictment states that he used an email registered in his real name to communicate with both known and unknown accomplices. The same email address was used to apply for a tourist visa to the United States.

Proceeds from the fraud were spent by Tomar on a lavish lifestyle. He purchased Rolex and Audemars Piguet watches, Lamborghini and Porsche cars, and traveled to London, Dubai, and Thailand.

In November 2023, India’s National Investigation Agency accused a resident of Visakhapatnam, Manmohan Surendra Panda, of espionage for Pakistan. He was allegedly paid in an undisclosed cryptocurrency for his services.

In March 2024, a London jury found 42-year-old Jian Wen guilty of laundering $6 billion in bitcoin.

In April, the founder of the Taiwanese cryptocurrency exchange ACE Exchange, David Pan, was accused of fraud amounting to $10.7 million.