Roscommon man loses over €50,000 in crypto investment scam

A County Roscommon man has been the victim of a crypto investment fraud in excess of €50,000.

Gardai have confirmed that in early December a Roscommon man in his mid-50’s reported to Gardaí that he was the victim of a crypto investment fraud to the value of in excess of €50,000. 

“Cryptocurrencies are unregulated digital currencies that generally only exist electronically. Virtual currencies are not regulated, so if something does go wrong you will not be able to claim compensation – you have no consumer protection,” warned Crime Prevention Officer Sergeant Damien Bartley.

Sergeant Bartley warned that fraudsters are beginning to use cryptocurrency investment scams in order to defraud victims out of their money.

Meanwhile, also in early December, a forty year old Longford man reported that he was applying for an emergency loan and went onto a website and paid €150 signing on fee. He subsequently noticed €2,500 had been transferred into an unknown bank account. “The injured party believes that his account was cloned and that he was scammed,” said Sergeant Bartley.

“The Crime Prevention advice here is beware of any firm that looks for an upfront fee from you. There are rules in place that mean no legitimate high cost credit provider can ever charge you an administration or application fee for a loan. If you are being charged a fee, you should immediately walk away and stop engaging with that firm," advised Sergeant Bartley.