Florida và Massachusetts cùng nhau thu hồi 5,4 triệu đô la tài sản tiền điện tử bị lừa đảo

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier announced on April 15 that the Cyber Fraud Enforcement Unit (CFEU) of the Florida Attorney General’s Office is working with the Marion County Sheriff’s Office to jointly recover $5.4 million from cryptocurrency scammers. The alleged scheme involved a cryptocurrency investment scam using a romantic relationship as a cover, with victims spread across six counties in Florida and multiple areas in Massachusetts.

Allocation of Recovered Funds and Distribution of Victims

(Source: My Florida Legal)

According to a statement from the Florida Attorney General’s Office, in this $5.4 million recovery operation, $700,000 has been returned to victims in Florida, $1,300,000 has been returned to victims in Massachusetts, and the remaining funds will continue to support the CFEU’s day-to-day law enforcement operations.

A victim in Marion County suffered a loss of more than $450,000 on their own. Marion County Sheriff Billy Woods said in the statement that the Marion County Sheriff’s Office’s assistance in this case completed what is, to date, the largest recovery operation, with a total recovered amount of $6,500,000.

Uthmeier said that his office will prioritize recovering the funds and returning them to victims, and that the CFEU is setting an industry benchmark in the field of cryptocurrency asset recovery.

CFEU Enforcement Record and Outstanding Assets Pending Trial

According to a post by the Florida Attorney General’s Office, in the first quarter of 2026, the CFEU recovered $3,300,000, accounting for 45% of the department’s total historical recovered amount of $7,200,000 since it was established 2.5 years ago.

The announcement also disclosed that an additional $12,600,000 in cryptocurrency assets have been frozen, and the related cases are still in judicial proceedings.

Massachusetts Law Enforcement Action and the Bitcoin Depot Enforcement Case

In a statement, Massachusetts Attorney General Campbell said that his office has received hundreds of complaints related to cryptocurrencies, has shut down more than 60 scam websites, has filed more than 30 lawsuits, and has recovered over $6,000,000 for victims.

Campbell also mentioned the enforcement action taken earlier this year against cryptocurrency ATM operator Bitcoin Depot. According to the position of the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office, Bitcoin Depot was accused of failing to take adequate consumer protection measures after being made aware that a large number of fraudulent transactions were being carried out through its machines.

As for Bitcoin Depot itself, the company discovered an unauthorized access event on March 23 and, as required, submitted an 8-K report to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), disclosing losses of 50.9 bitcoins, which at the time were worth approximately $3,600,000. Blockchain investigator ZachXBT wrote on the X platform that the actual transfer of funds occurred on March 20, involving 19 suspicious wallet addresses; the transferred funds were tracked to KuCoin deposit addresses. The total involved was about 54 bitcoins, worth approximately $3,900,000.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which law enforcement agencies are involved in this cryptocurrency scam recovery effort?

This operation was led by the Cyber Fraud Enforcement Unit (CFEU) of the Florida Attorney General’s Office, jointly carried out together with the Marion County Sheriff’s Office and the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office. The total recovery amount was $5.4 million.

How much cryptocurrency has CFEU recovered since it was established?

According to a post by the Florida Attorney General’s Office, since CFEU was established 2.5 years ago, it has cumulatively recovered $7,200,000 in cryptocurrency, and an additional $12,600,000 in frozen assets are still pending in litigation proceedings.

How is Bitcoin Depot’s security incident related to this scam case?

Bitcoin Depot is the enforcement target separately mentioned by Massachusetts Attorney General Campbell and was accused of failing to adequately protect consumers from being harmed by fraudulent transactions. Bitcoin Depot also, in accordance with SEC requirements, disclosed that it itself suffered an unauthorized access event, resulting in losses of approximately 50.9 bitcoins. The two incidents are independent cases.