U.S. prosecutors seek forfeiture of $25 million in crypto tied to scam cases

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US prosecutors crypto scam seizure

Highlights

U.S. prosecutors filed five civil forfeiture complaints in D.C., targeting $25 million in cryptocurrency linked to global scam operations involving over 270 suspected transactions.
The two largest cases seek $12.1 million from online romance scams and $10.4 million from fraudulent investment platforms, with three smaller complaints totaling $3.9 million.
The Scam Center Strike Force's new actions raise total recovered assets to over $800 million since November 2025, highlighting widespread digital-asset fraud targeting North American consumers.

Forfeiture cases target cross-border scam proceeds

As reported by CoinDesk, citing the U.S. Attorney’s Office, federal prosecutors have filed five civil forfeiture complaints in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia over cryptocurrency traced to international fraud operations investigated by the Secret Service.

Investigators say the funds are connected to fake investment platforms, online romance scams and a recovery scam in which fraudsters approached a person who had already lost money and offered to retrieve it for a fee. Agents traced assets through hundreds of wallet addresses and froze cryptocurrency linked to more than 270 suspected investment scam transactions, more than 200 romance scam victims and several victims in the Washington area.

The two largest cases seek about $12.1 million tied to online romance schemes and $10.4 million linked to fraudulent investment platforms. Three additional complaints seek about $1.23 million, $2.39 million and $285,000.

Federal recovery push expands anti-fraud effort

The filings are part of the Scam Center Strike Force, a federal initiative launched in November 2025 to pursue assets tied to financial fraud. Authorities say the latest cases broaden that campaign as scam networks continue to use cryptocurrency to move and obscure illicit proceeds.

In one of the cases, investigators say contact with a victim stopped after the person tried to withdraw money from what appeared to be a crypto investment account. The new forfeiture actions bring the task force’s total recoveries to more than $800 million, underscoring the scale of losses tied to digital-asset fraud affecting North American consumers.

In our earlier coverage of the U.S. Department of Justice monitoring polling sites in three Arizona counties, we explained how federal observers were deployed to support ballot security, transparency, and compliance with voting rights rules during the state’s primary election. We also noted that the Civil Rights Division remained available to take public questions and complaints through Election Day as part of broader efforts to reinforce election integrity and public trust.

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