Two suspects have been arrested by the French police in connection with Platypus' $9.1 million exploit, and 210,000 euros worth of cryptocurrency has been seized, according to the local authorities. Investigations leading to the arrests were supported by on-chain sleuth ZachXBT and crypto exchange Binance, said Platypus. The decentralized protocol was compromised in three separate flash loan attacks carried out by the same exploiter on Feb. 16. [#Cybercriminalité]La #PoliceNationale met fin à une escroquerie d'ampleur pour un préjudice de 9,5 millionssur une société américaine d’échange de cryptomonnaies. Interpellation et convocation en justice de 2 individus saisie de 210 000 € …

The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO), a.k.a, Interpol, is investigating how it could police crimes in the metaverse. However, a top Interpol executive believes there are issues with defining a metaverse crime. Interpol’s intent to oversee criminal activities on the metaverse was revealed by secretary general Jurgen Stock, according to BBC. Stock highlighted the ability of “sophisticated and professional” criminals to adapt to new technological tools for committing crimes. The move for policing metaverse comes nearly four months after the international organization launched its own metaverse in October 2022, at the 90th Interpol General Assembly in New Delhi, India. During …

Troubled cryptocurrency lender Nexo is facing more pressure from regulators as its offices have been reportedly raided as part of an international investigation. A group of prosecutors, investigators and foreign agents started searches of Nexo’s offices in the Bulgarian capital, the local news agency Standart reported on Jan. 12. The operation was reportedly initiated a few months ago, targeting a large-scale financial criminal scheme allegedly involving money laundering and violations of international sanctions against Russia. Citing sources of the Bulgarian National Television, the report alleges Nexo’s involvement in the scheme. The television also highlighted Nexo’s alleged ties with the government …

The crypto trader behind the $110 million exploit of decentralized exchange Mango Markets has been arrested in Puerto Rico — and charged with market manipulation and fraud. According to a previously sealed complaint filed with the Southern District of New York made public on Dec. 27, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) pinned Avraham Eisenberg with one count of “commodities fraud” and one count of “commodities manipulation” in relation to his exploit of Mango Markets. Eisenberg’s Oct. 11 exploit of Mango Markets worked by manipulating the value of the platform’s native token MNGO, artificially inflating its price relative to USD …

According to Bahamian court records filed on Dec. 14, Ryan Salame, the former co-CEO of FTX Digital Markets told the Securities Commission of the Bahamas (SCB) on Nov. 9 that FTX was sending customer funds to its sister trading firm Alameda Research. He also told the SCB only three people had the access required to transfer client assets to Alameda: Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, FTX co-founder Zixiao “Gary” Wang and FTX engineer Nishad Singh. The allegation spurred SCB executive director Christina Rolle to contact the commissioner of the Royal Bahamas Police Force to request an investigation. Related: Realized losses …

Coinbase has seen information requests from law enforcement surge over the past year, the cryptocurrency exchange reported in its latest transparency report. The vast majority of the enquiries came from the United States and were tied to criminal investigations. Coinbase’s new transparency report covers the last four quarters ending with September. In that time, the exchange received 12,320 information requests from law enforcement, an increase of about 66%. The United States accounted for 5,304, or 43%, of those requests. The United Kingdom, Germany and Spain produced between 1,000 and 2,000 requests apiece. Those four countries accounted for 80% of requests, …

Australians have been warned to stay away from suspicious-looking fake Bitcoin paper wallets, which work by luring victims into accessing a lucrative crypto wallet but will ultimately drain them of their own crypto holdings. According to a Nov. 22 post on the Facebook page of the NSW Police Force, the scam starts as a paper cryptocurrency wallet with a QR code, which is made to appear like a legitimate Bitcoin paper wallet. These are strewn by scammers in public locations such as streets or parks. An individual that locates the paper wallet and scans the QR code is directed to …

The Singapore Police Force has warned investors to be weary of fake websites claiming they can help them recover funds from the now-bankrupt cryptocurrency exchange FTX. On Nov. 19, the police issued a warning about a website claiming to be hosted by the United States Department of Justice that prompts FTX users to log in with their account credentials, local news agency Channel News Asia reported. The website, which was not identified, targets local investors affected by the FTX collapse, claiming that customers “would be able to withdraw their funds after paying legal fees.” The police said the website was …

“Right now three of them, Sam, Gary, and Nishad are under supervision in the Bahamas. Which means it will be hard for them to leave,” a source familiar with the matter told Cointelegraph. The source said they also understand that the three, as well as Alameda Research CEO Caroline Ellison, are looking for ways to flee to Dubai, which doesn’t have any extradition treaty. “I just got word that they were trying to get a way to get to Dubai which doesn’t have an extradition treaty.” The source has also revealed that Ellison is currently in Hong Kong, “so she …

A local report from South Korea claims that the country's prosecutors have obtained evidence to suggest Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon had onceordered an employee to manipulate the price of Terra Luna Classic (LUNC). A report by Korean Broadcasting System (KBS) on Nov. 3 quotes an official from the South Korean Prosecutors Office, who said they have obtained a "conversation history" in which "CEO Kwon specifically ordered price manipulation." The reported evidence came in the form of a "messenger conversation" between Kwon and a former Terraform Labs employee. Prosecutors did not disclose further details, noting: “I can’t reveal details, but …

Nikolai Mushegian, a co-founder of the cryptocurrency lending platform MakerDAO and the decentralized Dai (DAI) stablecoin, was found dead in Puerto Rico last week. Mushegian died due to drowning after being dragged by sea currents on the Condado beach in San Juan, the local newspaper El Nuevo Día reported. Mushegian had no vital signs by the time his body was rescued. The Condado beach is considered one of the world’s most dangerous places for swimmers, reportedly taking the lives of at least eight people in 2021. The unfortunate event was reported to local authorities on the morning on Oct. 28. …

The detective chief superintendent for the United Kingdom’s National Police Chiefs’ Council has said all police forces in the country have officers trained for investigations involving the enforcement and seizure of cryptocurrencies. In an Oct. 25 parliamentary debate on the U.K. Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill, Andy Gould of the NPCC said that the country’s police force had the capability to address economic crimes involving crypto, but not the capacity. He reported that the authorities had used £100 million — roughly $116 million at the time of publication — over the last four years to create “cryptocurrency tactical advisers …