Russian Woman Loses 28 Million Rubles in Long-Term Crypto Investment Scam

A 46-year-old woman from the western Russian city of Kursk has fallen victim to a large-scale cryptocurrency investment scam, losing 28 million rubles over the course of one year. The case was disclosed on Monday by Russia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs. According to police, the woman was initially contacted via a messaging application by a man who claimed to be living in an Arab country. The scammer presented himself as an experienced cryptocurrency investor and gradually gained her trust by portraying detailed knowledge of crypto markets. He told the victim she could earn significant profits by following his instructions, which began with downloading a specific mobile application allegedly used for crypto investing.

Scam Built Over a Year Using the “Pig Butchering” Method Russian investigators said the case followed a classic “pig butchering” scheme—a long-term fraud technique in which perpetrators build trust with victims over time and gradually persuade them to invest increasingly large sums. The scammer promised high and stable returns, guided the woman step by step through the supposed investment process, and encouraged repeated transfers of funds in cryptocurrencies. Investigators said it took roughly one year for the perpetrator to fully execute the scheme. As the fraud progressed, the victim exhausted her personal savings and, believing that higher investments would lead to even greater profits, sought additional funding. “She sold three apartments, a car, a gold bar, took out bank loans, and borrowed money from acquaintances to raise more funds, convinced that future returns would offset the losses,” authorities said. Once the woman ran out of money, the scammer deleted all communication records and cut off contact entirely, prompting her to report the incident to the police.

Crypto “Pig Butchering” Scams Continue Across Russia Russia’s Interior Ministry said it is investigating several similar cases reported in other regions of the country. In the Kirov region, a woman lost more than 2 million rubles after trusting investment promises from fake cryptocurrency exchanges. Like the victim in Kursk, she believed her funds were generating steady returns, only to later discover that both the platforms and contacts were fraudulent. Another case involved a 63-year-old man from the city of Kirov, who lost approximately 3 million rubles in late July after communicating with scammers via a messenger app. The fraudster posed as a financial adviser offering an “easy and profitable way to make money through cryptocurrency trading” in exchange for a 20% share of the profits. The man agreed, registered on a fake trading platform, and transferred funds to accounts provided by the unknown contact. Police said he invested his own savings and later added borrowed money, bringing the total amount transferred to 2,981,000 rubles.

Similar Scams Reported in Belarus Comparable schemes have also been reported in Belarus. A 23-year-old woman from Minsk contacted the Soviet District police after realizing she was unable to withdraw the money she believed she had earned. According to her statement, she encountered an advertisement on a social media platform and left her phone number after clicking on a link. She was subsequently contacted by someone claiming to be an analyst from an investment platform. The woman registered on a specialized website and, over two months, transferred approximately 50,000 rubles to an electronic wallet. When she attempted to withdraw her funds, the fake analyst demanded additional deposits, prompting her to suspect fraud and contact the authorities.

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