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- Tether has assisted law enforcement in tracking $250,000 stolen through a crypto scam involving a fake Trump-Vance campaign fundraiser
- The funds were linked to a fraudulent website impersonating a joint fundraising committee supporting Donald Trump and J.D. Vance
- Investigators have successfully frozen the assets, which were moved through multiple wallets and platforms
Tether has helped the FBI trace and freeze $250,000 in stolen cryptocurrency tied to a Nigerian scammer. The scheme impersonated a joint political effort by former President Donald Trump and Ohio Senator J.D. Vance, duping victims into sending money under the false belief it supported the Trump-Vance ticket. The perpetrators used cryptocurrencies in an attempt to obscure the trail, but blockchain analytics and Tether’s cooperation enabled swift recovery efforts.
Fake Fundraising Site Targeted Trump Supporters
The scam involved a website posing as an official fundraising arm for Trump and Vance’s 2024 campaign, soliciting cryptocurrency donations. Unsuspecting supporters sent over $250,000 in digital assets, including USDT, which were quickly funneled through various wallets to obscure their origin. Investigators, with assistance from Tether and blockchain forensics firms, were able to track the movement of funds across exchanges and eventually freeze them.
Tether confirmed that it had worked closely with U.S. law enforcement agencies to block the suspect funds, stating, “We remain committed to supporting investigations and preventing illicit activity on our network.” This comes two weeks after the company was praised for helping freeze ten times this amount in a pig butchering scam.
Crypto Traceability Key to Asset Recovery
Despite the scam’s attempt to exploit the pseudo-anonymity of cryptocurrencies, the traceable nature of blockchain transactions played a crucial role in locating the stolen funds. Once flagged, the USDT assets were frozen before they could be laundered or cashed out. Law enforcement has not yet announced arrests, but investigations are ongoing.
The incident highlights both the vulnerabilities in political fundraising and the evolving role of crypto companies like Tether in fraud prevention. While cryptocurrencies can be used to facilitate scams, cooperation between token issuers, forensic experts, and law enforcement is proving increasingly effective at identifying and reversing illicit transactions.