61-year-old woman loses £100,000 to cryptocurrency scam after Chase UK account fraud leading to pension liquidation and loan pressure

Summary

A 61-year-old woman lost £100,000 to a cryptocurrency scam after being contacted by fraudsters impersonating a legitimate investment firm. The scammers convinced her to open a Chase UK account and transfer money, and later pressured her to take out loans totaling £25,000. When she tried to cash out, she was repeatedly blocked until she and her husband cashed in their pensions to repay the loans. The scammer also sent a threatening image of her home, warning they could place a charge on it. A 69-year-old man lost £162,000 after being lured by a fake firm called Golden Currencies, which promised massive returns. He borrowed money from family and took out bank loans totaling £20,000 to try to access his funds, but was only reimbursed £17,000 by the money transfer service Wise. A 64-year-old man lost £24,000 after clicking on a fake article attributed to financial expert Martin Lewis, leading to repeated scam calls and significant financial loss. The fraud network, based in Tbilisi, Georgia, used call center scripts and fake trading screens to deceive victims, with data leaks revealing thousands of affected individuals.