The Public Prosecutor of Rio de Janeiro (MPRJ) has taken the initiative Operation Medellín this Friday (8). According to the official statement, a group of Brazilians and foreigners searched for victims through dating apps and applied the ‘Boa Noite, Cinderela’ scam to steal their cryptocurrencies.
The text also mentions that the group was located because of “advanced techniques for tracking crypto assets”. A total of five arrest warrants and five search and seizure warrants are being investigated in the city of São Paulo.
Such scams are becoming increasingly common. For example, in 2022, a 41-year-old Brazilian woman lost approximately R$600,000 worth of cryptocurrencies in a Tinder scam. Several other cases also occurred in other countries.
MPRJ launches Operation Medelín in search of group that ran ‘Good Night, Cinderella’ scam to steal cryptocurrencies from victims
The Rio de Janeiro Public Prosecutor’s Office says the group of scammers used sophisticated strategies at every step of the scheme. They initially met victims through dating apps, where they found out whether or not their targets had invested in cryptocurrencies through seemingly banal conversations.
The group, consisting of men and women, then arranged to meet the victims and drugged them. The scam is also known as ‘Good Night, Cinderella’.
With the victims’ smartphones in hand, the scammers sent cryptocurrencies to their addresses. According to the MPRJ, they were also concerned about hiding the stolen assets, which showed advanced knowledge about cryptocurrencies.
“The group, made up of women and men, Brazilians and foreigners, used dating apps to get closer to the victims”wrote MPRJ. “The thieves posed as enthusiasts of the virtual asset market and, in seemingly banal conversations, identified potential prey and arranged a meeting.”
“Opportunity where, after doping the injured party, they stole his mobile phone and thereby carried out the immediate transfer of crypto assets to accounts controlled by the group.”
Five arrest warrants have been issued in the city of São Paulo, in addition to five search and seizure warrants. According to information from G1, four have already been arrested and one woman is still at large.
Operation Medelín also received the support of the Security and Intelligence Coordination (CSI/MPRJ), the Military Police of the State of São Paulo, the 2nd Prosecutor’s Office for Territorial Criminal Investigation of the Botafogo and Copacabana Area of the Rio de Janeiro Center and Cyber GAECO of the MPSP.
Source: Live Coins
Barry Siefert is an accomplished journalist and author at The Nation View. He is known for his expertise in the field of cryptocurrency, and has written extensively on the topic. With a background in finance and economics, Barry has a deep understanding of the underlying technology and market forces that drive the crypto industry.
