Brooklyn man charged in phishing scam that swiped $16 million from Coinbase users

Brooklyn prosecutors said On Friday, a 23-year-old resident, Ronald Spektor, was charged with stealing $16 million in cryptocurrency from about 100 Coinbase users.

The person, who was dubbed ‘lolimfeelingevil’ online, is believed to be behind a phishing and social engineering scheme. Spektor posed as a representative of Coinbase and convinced users to send cryptocurrency to accounts he controlled, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said Spektor motivated victims by claiming their digital assets were at risk of being stolen by a hacker. He then allegedly attempted to launder the digital assets using cryptocurrency mixers, exchange services and crypto gambling websites.

Spektor was indicted Friday on 31 charges, including first-degree grand larceny, first-degree money laundering and participating in a scheme to defraud.

The Brooklyn District Attorney Office’s investigation, which took place over the past year, resulted in the seizure of approximately $105,000 in cash and approximately $400,000 in digital assets. Authorities are trying to secure more of the stolen property, they said.

Prosecutors said Spektor “openly bragged about his heists” within a channel on messaging platform Telegram called “Blockchain Enemies.” In recovered messages, Spektor allegedly said he lost $6 million in cryptocurrency through gambling.

In one blog postCoinbase said it was working closely with the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office and its Virtual Currency Unit. The company said it helped identify Spektor and the victims, shared associated on-chain activity and assisted in efforts to track stolen funds.

One of Spektor’s victims contacted pseudonymous blockchain sleuth ZachXBT, who published last year an investigation into the alleged scammer. The person who contacted ZachXBT said they paid $6 million.

Coinbase faced a backlash this year due to a data breach that affected nearly 70,000 users revealed in May. At the time, the company estimated damages of $400 million. The exchange said it acted quickly, reimbursing users affected by social engineering schemes using stolen information, and tightening controls on suppliers and insiders.

Spektor lives with his father in Sheepshead Bay, Brooklyn, according to the government. A judge set Spektor’s bail at $500,000 each ABC7 New York. The judge did not want Spektor’s father to post bail because he was unable to determine the source of the money.