Norway billed four men of participation in an “important” investment fraud which collected 963 million NOK (86.5 million dollars) among investors between March 2015 and November 2018.
Put down charge On Monday, the national authority for the survey and pursuit of economic and environmental crimes in Norway – also known as Økokrim – said that fraud operated by encouraging individuals to invest in “product packages” that contain cryptocurrencies and actions.
Økokrim says that it has proof that the network accused of individuals has made no real investment and that their business had no benefits beyond the depots of the victims.
In a press release, the state prosecutor of Økokrim, Joakim Ziesler Berge, said: “We believe that it is an important and in -depth fraud. We are talking about a large number of victims in many countries that have lost their money and important sums that have ended up with the defendants. »»
The defendants in question are Four Norwegian men In the fifties, the 1960s and 70s, three having allegedly collected the money invested and with another accused of having participated in money laundering.
The network has bleached more than 700 million NOK ($ 62.7 million) of the proceeds from the scam through a Norwegian investment company, with money also transmitted to accounts linked in various countries Asian.
Located in Sweden, Belgium, the Netherlands and China, their victims sent money to presume investment vehicles with names such as Crypto888 Club, Octa Partners and Nano Club.
These are all a brand for the same marketing scheme on several alleged levels (AKA Ponzi), with Octa Partners collapses and restarts as a nano clubThen as Crypto888, then later as Nano Crowd.
Each version of the fraud offered its own cryptocurrency to investors, starting with Octacoin and passing to Nanocoin and Ormeus Coin, while everyone has also promised to pay monthly yields according to their promised benefits.
According to Norwegian Journal DnOne of the accused people was appointed Terje Hvidsten, a former art merchant who has already been sentenced for fraud and who has been in prison since 2024 for the count of another serious fraud.
Another accused person has been appointed Dag Hætta (formerly Verner) Eriksen, who has similar convictions for corruption and fraud.
The other two alleged authors have not been appointed, although one was described as a 52-year-old man from Romerike (a district northeast of Oslo) and the other as a former lawyer for 70 years, who helped whiten the washing produced by fraud.
The 52 -year -old man denied criminal responsibility, while Hvisten’s lawyer said their client opposed the description of the indictment of him.
The other two accused refused to comment, with the case against the four provided for in the Oslo District Court over 60 days from September.
“The case shows that the crime organized in the form of fraud and money laundering beyond the borders will be the subject of an investigation and the prosecution, even if the victims of the crime are in countries other than the Norway, “said Joakim Ziesler Berge.
“A growing problem”
Økokrim also mentions in its declaration that investment fraud “is an increasing problem in Norway and abroad”, with fraud experts echoing this description.
“Investment fraud involving cryptocurrencies is increasingly common in Europe and worldwide,” said Sarah Twohig, a regulatory lawyer for disputes specializing in cryptographic fraud in the Multinational Pinsent Multinational law firm.
Twohig said Decipher that the last Report on the crime of the crypto of the channel chain have found that high-efficiency investment and “pork butcher” scams provide the highest yields for cryptocurrency fraudsters, all cryptographic scams receiving at least $ 9.9 billion in chain value in 2024.
And although she notes that cryptographic transactions still represent “only a limited part of the criminal economy”, Twohig has also recognized that virtual assets offer certain advantages to potential fraudsters.
She explained: “Criminals often exploit the decentralized and pseudonym nature of cryptocurrencies to carry out and more easily hide fraudulent activities. This makes it difficult for the regulatory authorities and the police to trace and recover funds. »»
Regulators are starting to catch up, EU markets in cryptocurrency regulation (MICA) to meet the growing risk of fraud by imposing strict requirements on crypto-active service providers.
“The new EU LMA package is neutral technology to ensure that the crime product of cryptocurrencies cannot be used to whiten funds or provide terrorist funding,” said Twohig. “This will provide legal protection to investors and companies operating in cryptocurrency space.”
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