Interpol Ties $122M Crypto Wallet to Romance Scams in 97-Country Sweep

“Criminal syndicates exploit human psychology to manipulate their targets, and no nation can stay safe unless all countries are equipped and committed to jointly fighting back,” Tomonobu Kaya, director of Interpol’s Financial Crime and Anti-Corruption Centre, said in the announcement.

Other cases in the operation included a scam network in Eswatini that built a replica of a Brazilian police station to deceive victims, and a $6.6 million business email fraud blocked across Singapore and Oman. U.S. authorities have warned for years that crypto romance and pig-butchering scams drain billions from victims each year.

The arrests show law enforcement can follow money through cross-chain swaps. Interpol coordinated with police in Thailand and other countries to trace the wallet, relying on cooperation between jurisdictions and the public nature of blockchain records. The stop-payment system halted some transfers before they moved further, though the scale of losses suggests gaps remain in how fast funds can be frozen across borders.

Interpol did not say whether the operation will continue beyond April. The two Thai suspects now face investigation that could lead to additional wallet addresses or platforms, the agency said.