20-year-old sentenced for role in a crypto theft ring that fleeced victims out of $263M — here’s how to spot cybercriminals before they strike

The 20-year-old, whose real name is Marlon Ferro, was sentenced to 6.5 years in federal prison in May for his role in a two-year-long conspiracy that scammed victims out of $263 million in cryptocurrency (2). He's also been ordered to serve three years of supervised release and pay $2.5 million in restitution.

Members played specialized roles that included finding targets, hacking databases, making fraudulent phone calls, and money laundering. But when they couldn't coerce victims to surrender access to their cryptocurrency, they called Ferro to steal hardware wallets. In one instance, Ferro broke into a victim's home in Winnsboro, Texas, and stole a hardware wallet containing roughly 100 bitcoin, valued at the time at more than $5 million.

"This scheme blended sophisticated online fraud with old-fashioned burglary to drain victims of millions of dollars in digital assets," said Jeanine Pirro, U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, in a news release.

The international racketeering ring was forged out of friendships formed on online gaming platforms, according to a previous release (3) from the attorney general's office. Stolen virtual currency was used to purchase a range of luxury goods and services, including $4 million at nightclubs (4), luxury handbags, clothes, and watches and a fleet of exotic cars worth up to $3.8 million.

The rise in crypto scams

Crypto scams are surging alongside crypto itself. In 2025, Americans lost $11 billion (5) to cryptocurrency-related scams, according to the FBI's annual Internet Crime Report. Specifically, cryptocurrency investment fraud was the highest source of financial loss for Americans last year, with losses hitting $7.2 billion.

Assets like cryptocurrency are attractive to scammers because they're harder to trace and recover. Unlike credit card fraud, which can be disputed through your bank or credit card company, cryptocurrency payments are typically not reversible.

How crypto scams work

The tactics used by scammers can vary but many include spoofing, manipulation, and trust-building. Scammers will often attempt to foster relationships with victims (6), contacting them via social media, text messages or ads. Many will pretend to be trusted individuals, like investment managers, government officials, business representatives or celebrities.

Once trust has been built, scammers will ask victims to transfer funds to them or convince them to invest in phony money-making opportunities. Impersonation and blackmail scams also use fear tactics to pressure victims, often claiming they've missed payments, could face legal battles or are at risk of having compromising information leaked.

How to protect yourself

Since scammers follow similar patterns, there are important warning signs you can watch for to avoid falling victim to a crypto scam.

1. Keep an eye out for red flags

Be wary of unknown individuals who message you online claiming to want friendship, romantic relationships or individuals claiming to be officials. Remember: no legitimate business or government will ever email, text or message you to ask for money. Watch for pressure or scare tactics. That's always a tell-tale sign something is wrong.