Two Nigerians and a third accomplice have been sentenced to a combined 28 years and nine months in prison for masterminding a cryptocurrency fraud scheme that stole nearly £5 million from victims
Anthony Ikenwe, 29, Kevin Nwamma, 25, and Hamza Bashir, 23, were sentenced at Southwark Crown Court after being convicted of conspiracy to commit fraud and money laundering.
Investigators said the trio posed as police officers and falsely told victims that their cryptocurrency accounts had been compromised. They then convinced them to reveal account credentials or transfer their digital assets into supposedly secure wallets that were actually controlled by the fraudsters.
Police said the suspects sourced victims’ personal information from the dark web, built fake cryptocurrency websites and impersonated employees of crypto firms while operating fraudulent technical support services to make the scam appear legitimate.
During the investigation, detectives recovered a video showing one suspect speaking to a victim while receiving live instructions from a co-conspirator on Snapchat. One message read: “Tell him to try with old pass.”
Authorities said the stolen funds were spent on lavish lifestyles, including luxury holidays, designer watches, expensive cars and shopping trips to high-end stores such as Harrods.
Investigators confirmed that at least eight victims lost almost £5 million in cryptocurrency, but believe many more people may have fallen victim to the scheme.
The investigation, launched in January 2025, involved analysing blockchain transactions, cryptocurrency exchange records, financial data, communication records, internet service provider information and digital wallets. Detectives said the evidence uncovered an organised criminal network operating across multiple online platforms and jurisdictions.
Detective Inspector Geoff Donoghue of the Metropolitan Police’s Cryptocurrency Team said the case highlighted how the group exploited victims by impersonating police officers, adding that cybercriminals cannot rely on technology or digital assets to hide their crimes.
Ikenwe and Nwamma were each sentenced to six years for conspiracy to commit fraud and five years for money laundering, with both sentences running concurrently. Bashir received three years and nine months for conspiracy to commit fraud and three years for money laundering, also to run concurrently.
Following the convictions, police urged the public to be wary of unsolicited calls about their finances and advised people to independently verify any claims with their bank or cryptocurrency service provider before sharing personal or financial information.