{"id":742,"date":"2026-02-14T13:44:28","date_gmt":"2026-02-14T13:44:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/?p=742"},"modified":"2026-02-14T13:44:28","modified_gmt":"2026-02-14T13:44:28","slug":"valentines-day-romance-scams-us-prosecutors-warn-on-crypto-risks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/2026\/02\/14\/valentines-day-romance-scams-us-prosecutors-warn-on-crypto-risks\/","title":{"rendered":"Valentine\u2019s Day Romance Scams: US Prosecutors Warn on Crypto Risks"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery has-nested-images columns-default is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\">\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"576\" height=\"384\" data-id=\"743\" src=\"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_1454-1.jpeg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-743\" srcset=\"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_1454-1.jpeg 576w, https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/IMG_1454-1-300x200.jpeg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 576px) 100vw, 576px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Federal prosecutors in Ohio are cautioning Americans about a rise in romance scams involving cryptocurrency as Valentine\u2019s Day approaches. Authorities say fraudsters are exploiting online relationships to persuade victims to send digital assets, leading to losses that total millions of dollars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office for the Northern District of Ohio reported that scammers typically make contact through dating apps, social media platforms, or unsolicited text messages. After building trust over weeks or months, they request money for fake emergencies or investment opportunities. U.S. Attorney David M. Toepfer said these criminals target trust and emotion, often focusing on older or vulnerable individuals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Officials highlighted several recent cases. In December 2025, authorities charged Frederick Kumi, a Ghanaian national accused of participating in a romance fraud operation that allegedly stole more than 8 million dollars from elderly victims since 2023. Investigators said the group used artificial intelligence tools to create fake identities and maintain convincing conversations before requesting funds. Kumi was arrested in Ghana and faces charges that include wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In another case, an Ohio woman lost approximately 663,000 dollars after receiving a message from someone claiming it was sent to the wrong number. The scammer later directed her to open accounts on Crypto.com and Coinbase, then persuaded her to transfer funds to a fraudulent investment platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation were able to trace some of the stolen funds to crypto wallets and, with assistance from Tether, seized more than 8.2 million dollars in USDT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Research shows these schemes are part of a broader surge in crypto related fraud. A January 2026 report from PeckShield estimated that scams and hacks cost users over 4 billion dollars in 2025, with about 1.37 billion dollars linked specifically to scams. Losses from scam activity rose around 64 percent compared to the previous year, often involving highly personalized impersonation tactics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Prosecutors advise individuals to conduct reverse image searches on profile photos, be cautious of anyone unwilling to meet in person, and never send cryptocurrency, gift cards, or wire transfers to someone met online. Victims are encouraged to preserve communications and financial records and report incidents to the FBI\u2019s Internet Crime Complaint Center. Officials also stress that swift reporting is critical, as law enforcement may be able to freeze stolen crypto assets if wallets are identified before funds are moved through mixers or foreign exchanges.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Federal prosecutors in Ohio are cautioning Americans about a rise in romance scams involving cryptocurrency as Valentine\u2019s Day approaches. Authorities say fraudsters are exploiting online relationships&#46;&#46;&#46;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-742","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/742","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=742"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/742\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":744,"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/742\/revisions\/744"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=742"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=742"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.coinsignals.net\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=742"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}