Clucoin Founder Admits to Stealing IDR 17.6 Billion of Crypto Investor Funds

Previously, Andreas Szakacs, co-founder of controversial cryptocurrency company OmegaPro, was arrested in Turkey on suspicion of running a pyramid scheme that defrauded investors of USD 4 billion or equivalent to IDR 63 trillion (assuming an exchange rate of IDR 15,751 per US dollar).

As reported by Coinmarketcap, Friday (8/23/2024), originally from Sweden, Szakacs reportedly changed his name to Emre Avcı after becoming a Turkish citizen. He denied the allegations, claiming he only worked in finance and marketing.

The arrests followed a tip-off from an anonymous informant on June 28. Following raids on two villas in Istanbul’s Beykoz district, Szakacs was detained on July 9 and arrested on July 10 on charges of fraud using information systems, banks or credit institutions as a means.

During the raid, Turkish authorities seized computers and 32 cold wallets, which are typically used to store cryptocurrencies offline. Although Szakacs reportedly did not provide the passwords, investigators were able to track the movement of a total of $160 million worth of cryptocurrencies.

The collapse of OmegaPro in late 2022, which coincided with the collapse of the FTX cryptocurrency exchange, caused many investors around the world to experience financial bankruptcy.

A key witness in the case, Dutch national Abdul Ghaffar Mohaghegh, told investigators he lost $7 million in the fraud scheme.

Mohaghegh also claims to have represented, through attorneys, 3,000 affected investors who lost USD 103 million in the alleged fraud.