Police recover $3 million worth of Bitcoin during scam investigation

WESTPORT, CT (WFSB) - Detectives in Westport said they were able to recover $3 million worth of Bitcoin after a person became the victim of an elaborate scam.

The investigation was launched in May 2023.

The victim reported that in Jan. 2023, the victim was convinced to move money from a retirement account into a “Kraken” cryptocurrency account.

The victim said that between January and March 2023 over $3 million worth of Bitcoin was withdrawn and transferred to cryptocurrency wallets that the victim did not control.

Working alongside the state police Organized Crime Task Force, the Westport Police Detective Bureau was able to track the transactions and effectively freeze all accounts associated with the scam.

Ultimately, police said the accounts led to individuals who lived in Pakistan.

Although arrests were highly unlikely in the case, Westport police said they were proud to announce that their detective bureau was able to recover $3.2 million which was returned to the victim.