Europol Arrest Popular Crypto Youtuber for Alleged Fraud

European Police (Europol) have arrested popular Spanish crypto YouTuber Gonzalo Sapina on allegations of fraud. Europol revealed this information on its website, in which the police authority provided added information.  Sapina was arrested alongside five others for fraud through trading courses featuring bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

Europol also indicated that they had seized the equivalent of 70 thousand euros in cash, bitcoin, ether, xrp, and OmiseGo.  Sapina presided over a financial trade academy called GNZ Academy, a trading company located in Andorra. The company took advantage of the Youtuber’s popularity to attract victims. The academy offered courses that ranged from 99 to 599 euros for victims to learn how to make compounded profits. 

According to comments from some users, the courses barely had content and failed to deliver on promises. This contrasted the GNZ Academy website, which showed images of students thanking the Youtuber for knowledge impacted.  Europol believes that more than 11,000 people were affected by the scheme perpetrated by Sapina and his company.  It is understood that Sapina has been provisionally arrested for international fraud. While the rest of the people who acted as collaborators were released as their participation in the scam could not be proven. 

Crypto Scams on the Rise

The popularity of cryptocurrency in recent years has also resulted in a growing number of scams. There is an increasing number of people who have been defrauded due to fraudulent crypto trading companies. These companies promise investors a huge return on investments, and many unsuspecting victims fall into their schemes. This has led to concern from regulators globally who have looked to prosecute suspected fraud cases. 

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Crypto scams are not only limited to false investment opportunities. Some cybercriminals also impersonate legitimate cryptocurrency platforms. Crypto exchange Kraken recently warned users of phishing and listing scam making the rounds on Telegram regarding its listing team.