The post INTERPOL seizes $293 million, arrests 5,811 in global scam crackdown appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
INTERPOL revealed in a statement that was shared on Thursday, July 9, that a four-month operation spanning 97 countries and territories arrested 5,811 people and froze $293 million in illicit money. This sweep also reached some crypto holders as the investigators traced romance-scam profits laundered through cross-chain token swaps. The operation, called First Light 2026, ran from January 15 to April 30, according to INTERPOL’s statement. Its focus was social engineering, the practice of exploiting a person’s trust to extract money or account details. That category covers business email compromise, sextortion, romance, impersonation, and investment scams, along with the laundering networks that move the proceeds. INTERPOL counted more than 142,000 victims over the four months. Alongside the arrests, police blocked 31,014 bank accounts, solved 23,715 cases, identified ano
The post A 20-Year-Old’s Crypto Wallet Moved $123M in Romance-Scam Cash: Interpol Says appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
In brief Thai police arrested two people over a scheme that laundered romance-scam proceeds through crypto, using cross-chain swaps to hide the trail, Interpol said. One suspect, aged 20, controlled a wallet that processed more than $122.5 million in 10 months. The arrests came out of Operation First Light 2026, a four-month push across 97 countries and territories that led to 5,811 arrests and the interception of $293 million in illicit assets. Interpol said it identified more than 142,000 victims and blocked over 31,000 bank accounts, using its I-GRIP stop-payment tool to check the flows of fiat and virtual assets. A 20-year-old’s cryptocurrency wallet moved more than $122.5 million in just 10 months as part of a scheme to launder money stolen from romance-scam victims, Interpol said, in one of the standout cases from a sweeping global anti-fraud operation. Thai
