Detectives from Scottsdale, in collaboration with U.S. Secret Service agents, arrested a man on December 11 for charges of theft, fraud, and money laundering. The suspect allegedly stole $300,000 worth of cryptocurrency from two unsuspecting passengers.
Fake Uber Driver as a Trap
According to Fox10 Phoenix, Nuruhussein Hussein pretended to be an Uber driver in Scottsdale, Arizona. The thefts reportedly occurred in March and October when Hussein lured victims waiting outside the W Hotel, posing as their ordered Uber ride.
First Incident: Hussein allegedly asked to borrow a passenger's phone, claiming his device was broken.
Second Incident: He offered to resolve issues with the Uber app after the victim questioned why the app showed the driver hadn’t arrived yet.
Stealing Cryptocurrency from Coinbase
Hussein reportedly used the opportunity to access the victims' Coinbase accounts while holding their phones. The stolen cryptocurrency was transferred from phone to phone and moved to cold storage (offline wallets).
Court documents do not specify how Hussein knew the names of the passengers waiting for their Uber.
Threatening the Victims
When one victim grew suspicious, Hussein allegedly threatened them, saying: “Calm down, or something bad will happen.”
Arrest and Charges
Hussein was arrested by Scottsdale detectives and U.S. Secret Service agents on December 11. The judge set a $200,000 cash bond and ordered electronic monitoring if Hussein were to secure his release.
The court imposed restrictions, including:
No internet usage,
No international travel, due to concerns that Hussein might destroy evidence or flee to Ethiopia, where he allegedly travels frequently.
Hussein is scheduled to appear in court again on December 18.
Rising Cases of Cryptocurrency Robberies
According to GitHub, there have been at least 19 cases of offline crypto thefts worldwide in the past year. This compares to 17 cases in 2023 and 32 in 2021.
One of the most notable incidents occurred in 2014, when an unknown attacker attempted to extort 1,000 bitcoins from computer scientist and cryptographer Hal Finney. At the time, the stolen amount was valued at $400,000.
Recent Case in Australia
In the latest recorded incident on December 3, thieves in Melbourne, Australia, crashed through a shopping center window and stole a Bitcoin ATM. Police later found the ATM pried open and burning in a park.
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