US Authorities Reclaim $5M in Tether USDT from Scam Operations

The United States Attorney for the Eastern District of North Carolina has announced that approximately $5 million worth of Tether (USDT) has been seized from a crypto scam. These funds were traced to cryptocurrency addresses associated with the laundering of illicit funds stolen from victims through a "Pig Butchering" scam.

The term "pig butchering" refers to a scam where fraudsters build trust with their victims over time, metaphorically "fattening them up" before executing their scheme. In this case, scammers employed social engineering tactics, fake investment platforms, and promises of high returns to lure unsuspecting victims into transferring large sums of cryptocurrency.

According to court filings, criminals have used a wicked and dirty approach to recruit victims. They developed their trust by faking a romantic relationship with them. They have used a criminal technique by creating fake investing platforms to induce the victim to invest more.

The US investigation team has worked with Tether for its help in transferring the assets. The department has acknowledged Tether for their assistance.

FBI Charlotte Special Agent in Charge Robert M. DeWitt said, "This cryptocurrency seizure serves as an example of the FBI adapting to the changing criminal landscape and fighting for victims of cyber-enabled fraud schemes."