Over the years, we have seen multiple stories regarding people scamming Bitcoin holders. It is a very worrisome trend which only grows more popular, it seems. More specifically, a group of fake Interpol agents scammed Russian tourists out of their Bitcoin holdings. A total amount of 4 million Baht worth of BTC was taken from them. It is not the first nor the last time such incidents will occur. An official investigation is underway to hopefully retrieve the stolen money.
According to Thai Visa, the incident took place in Muang District. More specifically, a Russian couple found themselves face to face with two Russian men. At that time, the men identified themselves as Interpol agents. They immediately claimed the couple was involved in some irregular Bitcoin activity. No evidence of these claims was ever provided during the incident. That is not surprising, as it is clear these individuals were looking to scam the Bitcoin holders regardless.
Fake Interpol Agents Want Your Bitcoins
By taking the couple by force, the tone was set rather quickly. A third Russian man entered the room shortly afterward. His demand is simple: the password for the netbook computer. Additionally, he obtained the Bitcoin account password. It is unclear if this applies to an exchange or a desktop wallet. For now, the details regarding that particular aspect remain rather vague. Either way, the account held a total of 100,000 Euro worth of Bitcoin.
The couple was scared and eventually gave in. Facing a threat of being drugged and handed to the Thai police is not all that appealing. It took a total of five hours before the fake Interpol agents got what they wanted. Thankfully, no physical harm is done to the couple, although they are still pretty shaken up. After contacting the Thai police, we now have to await what the investigation turns up. Bitcoin transactions are rather easy to trace due to the transparent nature of its blockchain.
So far, it seems the fake Interpol agents have fled to Malaysia. This seems to confirm the Thai police knows all too well what is going on or who is behind this theft. Assuming that is the case, it should be easy to rectify the situation. Whether or not the Russian couple will get their money back, seems highly unlikely. It is evident cryptocurrencies will continue to attract criminals all over the world. This is a rather problematic development, but there’s little one can do about it. Criminals have become very bold in their attempt to steal BTC, though.
