Indian citizen sentenced to 5 years in prison for $20 million cryptocurrency scam using fake Coinbase exchange website

Indian citizen Chirag Tomar was sentenced to 60 months in prison by the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, followed by two years of supervised release, for a cryptocurrency fraud scheme exceeding $20 million through the use of a forged Coinbase exchange website. Court documents show that since June 2021, Tomar and his accomplices have defrauded hundreds of global victims by impersonating the Coinbase Pro website (using similar domains such as CoinbasePro.Com). The fraud ring stole user login credentials through phishing websites or tricked users into providing two-factor authentication codes, illegally accessing victims' real Coinbase accounts and transferring cryptocurrency. In February 2022, a victim in the Western District of North Carolina was defrauded of over $240,000 in cryptocurrency through this forged website. Tomar ultimately converted the stolen cryptocurrency into cash, which he used to purchase luxury watches and vehicles. Tomar was arrested upon arrival at the Atlanta airport on December 20, 2023 and pleaded guilty on May 20, 2024.