article 🚨 Crypto Scam Alert: $250K Stolen by Fraudsters Masquerading as Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee 🚨

In a recent investigation, the FBI uncovered a sophisticated cryptocurrency scam in which fraudsters, allegedly operating from Nigeria, impersonated the Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee and managed to siphon off approximately $250,300 in Ethereum-based USDT from an unsuspecting donor.

How the Scam Unfolded:

The fraudulent operation was flagged as a Business Email Compromise (BEC) scheme by U.S. prosecutors, who announced the filing of a formal complaint earlier this week.

Blockchain analysis enabled the FBI to trace a total of 40,353 USDT.ETH involved in the transaction, with authorities actively pursuing the recovery of these assets to return them to the rightful owner.

The Subtle Trick Behind the Fraud

The scammer’s approach hinged on exploiting a tiny but crucial typo in the email address.

Last December, the victim received an email purportedly from Steve Witkoff, co-chair of the Trump-Vance Inaugural Committee. However, the scammer used an email domain differing only by a lowercase letter — replacing the letter ‘I’ with a lowercase ‘L’ in the domain: @t47lnaugural.com instead of the legitimate @t47inaugural.com.

Because of the font style, the fake email appeared nearly indistinguishable from the authentic one, fooling the victim into trusting the communication.

The Transfer and Loss

Following the email instructions, the victim transferred funds to a crypto wallet ending with 58c52 on December 26, 2024, under the false impression that the wallet belonged to the Inaugural Committee.

The FBI reports that within just two hours, the stolen USDT.ETH worth $250,300 was moved from this wallet to a different crypto address, making recovery more difficult.

Official Warnings and Advice

Steven J. Jensen, FBI Assistant Director in Charge, emphasized:

U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro urged donors to:

She also highlighted the challenge law enforcement faces in retrieving stolen funds, noting:

Key Takeaways:

• Always verify email domains closely, especially in financial transactions.

• Be suspicious of even minor irregularities in sender addresses.

• Confirm payment details through secondary communication channels if possible.

• Understand that blockchain theft recovery is often complicated and time-consuming.

If you suspect any suspicious emails or requests related to crypto donations, report them immediately to authorities.