According to TechFlow, on December 17, Decrypt cited local English news media (The International) as reporting that earlier this year, with the help of Europol, a 39-year-old suspect with a series of criminal records was arrested in Milan, Italy. The suspect was reportedly involved in a new variant of the "scam" scam, which traditionally uses counterfeit banknotes to buy luxury goods such as expensive watches or gold. In this case, the victim gives the scammer cryptocurrency in exchange for counterfeit banknotes. The Vienna police call this variant "Rip-Deal 2.0".
The suspect was also found in possession of 200,000 euros in counterfeit banknotes. "These crimes are often committed by organized gangs from the Western Balkans," said Chief Inspector Gerald Goldnagl, head of the Vienna police station.
Detective Mario Kaintz said the gang's scams were "sophisticated". In some cases, "they asked victims to enter passwords or 'seed phrases' for cryptocurrency wallets, and sometimes used cameras hidden in the ceiling to spy on the victims' phone screens".
