§ 01The brief
Three weeks after the original scam, the client received a message from a company that said it had 'located his Bitcoin' and could return it for a $45,000 fee, paid in Bitcoin. They had a polished website and a fake DSSI letter.
§ 02What I did
- 1.
Checked the 'recovery firm': its domain was eight days old and the DSSI letter used a template seen in other recovery scams.
- 2.
Traced the original Bitcoin: it sat in a private wallet and had not moved, so nobody could have 'located' it in a recoverable place.
- 3.
Helped him report both the original scam and the recovery scam to CCS and the FAE.
§ 03The outcome
The client did not pay the $45,000. His original loss remains in a private wallet, and his report is on file if it ever moves to an exchange.
“He told me the truth about my coins and saved me from losing more. That was the most useful half hour of the whole year.”