Scam investigation leads to suspect in China, money recovered for victim
By James Stratton
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BROOKFIELD, Wisconsin (WISN) — A cryptocurrency scam led police in Brookfield across the world to suspect in China, charges were filed against a man who lives there, and money was recovered for a woman who lost $55,000.
Prosecutors charged Zhao Lin, of Nanchang City, China, with two felonies of conspiracy to commit theft and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Though there’s a slim chance police will ever arrest him.
Prosecutors say a woman called Brookfield police, saying she believed she lost money in an investment scam. The woman told police, according to prosecutors, she met someone on Facebook, and then on WhatsApp, who she thought was helping her invest. A criminal complaint says the woman invested $55,000.
“As soon as the victim transferred the cryptocurrency from the wallet that the victim controlled to wherever the suspect wanted it, it was gone,” said Brookfield Det. Chris Foster, who investigated the case.
Prosecutors say the suspected scammers claimed her money had doubled to $117,000 in January. When she tried to withdraw it and needed to pay a fee, Foster said she believed it was a scam.
Foster and state investigators from the Wisconsin Department of Financial Institutions were able to track down the individual crypto wallet numbers and transaction numbers. Foster then asked the crypto account company to freeze the accounts and hand over the owner’s information. Which, he says, led them to Zhao Lin.
“He was just where the money ended up,” Foster said.
He said police froze three accounts, which eventually will lead to the victim receiving roughly $31,000 back.
“It’s a big deal, it doesn’t happen often,” Foster said.
The Wisconsin DFI declined to comment on this case specifically, saying the investigation is still open, but noted the success rate for recovering stolen crypto funds is not very likely. Though they do get requests from law enforcement for help roughly once or twice per week. Often, police request help tracing crypto, including collecting information and creating affidavits.
In this case, once the accounts were frozen, police say Lin emailed them directly asking for help, saying he did not know why his account was frozen.
Foster responded, asking for his information and how he received the cryptocurrency.
Lin responded and said he couldn’t provide that information, according to an email provided by Brookfield police.
“I obtained USDT [cryptocurrency] through dozens of merchants, and I am unable to provide their information. Please restore my trading privileges as soon as possible. Thank you,” he responded, in part.
“It’s an example of the capabilities of the modern law enforcement agency,” Brookfield Police Chief Chris Garcia said. “To reach halfway across the globe and get a victim’s money back, and then seek some form of justice.”
Garcia said to verify everything before making an investment online, especially if someone contacts you directly. If you think it could be a scam, he suggests calling the police to verify first.
Wisconsin DFI said you can end the conversation by simply saying no. Or turn the tables and ask questions, DFI says a legitimate investment professional must be licensed and registered.
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