In a bitcoin fraud of 500.000 dollars in the US, Philip Liakounakos, son of Thomas and Natasha Liakounakos, is allegedly involved.
According to a report in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Philip Liakounakos is accused of stealing that amount from a bitcoin dealer through a complex scam.
"A 23-year-old man is accused in Las Vegas of a complex bitcoin scam, according to authorities, through which he obtained up to 500.000 dollars from a novice cryptocurrency investor," the publication says.
Philip Liakounakos, the publication says, was taken into custody Monday in Clark County and charged with stealing more than $100.000 dollars, using another person's identity to cause financial loss and unlawful act, a felony, involving emails or transfer of computer data.
The publication reports that police records do not indicate a place of residence. However, the arrest warrant states that police identified him using a Florida state ID.
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A Las Vegas police detective, the publication claims, wrote on the arrest warrant for Liakounakos, whose name has been withheld by police, informed the Internet Crime Complaint Center in November 2020 that he fell victim to a Bitcoin scam.
What the victim claims
The victim claimed to police that he was approached by an associate, whom he knew through Telegram. The two agreed to a bitcoin transaction. The victim allegedly transferred $500,000 in bitcoin, which included $50,000 in seller's fees, to his associate, in exchange for money.
However, the next day, when he contacted his partner about the transaction, the individual had no idea what the victim was telling him, and the victim then realized that he had transferred the money to a scammer posing as his partner.
"I reviewed the transaction on the public blockchain and noticed that the bitcoins were moved quickly by what is commonly known as "peeling" to make it impossible to trace where the bitcoins were going,' a detective wrote in the warrant."
The term peel chains describes a method of laundering large amounts of cryptocurrency through a series of transactions.
How police were led to the arrest warrant for Liakounakos
"In December, the victim contacted police stating that the scammer re-contacted him via Telegram as part of a proposed $999,900 bitcoin transaction. The victim received an email from the scammer. The message allowed police to obtain several search warrants that ultimately led detectives to issue the warrant for Liakounakos.
Liakounakos is expected to appear in court in Las Vegas today. His attorney is not listed in the electronic court records."
Source: Proto Thema
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Views & opinions expressed are those of the author and/or Cyprus Times
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