Dutch authorities have sentenced a 40-year-old man from Deventer to four years in prison for large-scale cryptocurrency fraud. Further, the convict will not be able to act as an asset manager and trader in financial products, including cryptocurrencies, for a period of five years. The man will also have to pay over 937,000 euros ($1.07m) in restitution to the government.
In April 2020, the police raided a warehouse in Deventer and seized a laptop which led them to convict. Authorities found that this man owned and operated the online cryptocurrency trading place Coinhouse.eu. In early April 2018, Coinhouse.eu customers found themselves unable to withdraw their wallets on the platform. This was because the convict had emptied the wallets of the account holders.
In December 2020, the convict began to defraud customers of Triodos bank by pretending to call on behalf of Triodos and convincing them to scan a QR code they received on email. The unaware customers scanned the codes and inadvertently made payments to cryptocurrency trading platforms. The convict then converted the illicitly-obtained money into cryptocurrency.
The man was also on trial for laundering 1.8 million euros ($2.05m). He bought a house, luxury vehicles and jewelry with the money obtained from the cryptocurrency scam. Additionally, he ran a bitcoin ATM in Deventer, which he also used to launder the proceeds of his crimes.
Source: Public Prosecutor’s Office, Netherlands
