An Oxford University graduate has been jailed for four and a half years after stealing around £2 million in cryptocurrency from more than 100 people.
Dutch national Wybo Wiersma, 40, created a phony website that said it would generate a ‘seed’ for people investing in an online currency called Iota.
A genuine ‘seed’ is a private key made up of 81 random characters that would allow those people – and only them – to access their Iota wallets.
But the ones from Wiersma’s website were not random – he had predetermined them, meaning he was able to access their Iota ‘tokens’ and transfer them to a web of trading accounts.
His website, iotaseed.io, still exists and is now used to tell the story of the scam in an effort to prevent other people falling into the same trap.
According to the site, Wiersma had crafted iotaseed.io in such a way that it came top of a Google search for the phrase ‘Iota seed generator’.
Some of his victims lost their businesses, inheritances and life savings as a result of his scheme.
He was first arrested in January 2019 and several of his devices were seized, but he fled to the Netherlands after being released on bail.
In April 2021, he was extradited back to England and appeared at Oxford Magistrates’ Court the day after his arrival.
He admitted theft of £2,156,000 at Oxford Crown Court following a five-year investigation by the South East Regional Organised Crime Unit (SEROCU).
Detective Inspector Rob Bryant said: ‘This was a particularly complex investigation involving more than 100 victims worldwide.’
He added: ‘Wiersma has now admitted his involvement and will have time to reflect upon his actions in prison.
‘Meanwhile SEROCU will use all available legislation to ensure that as much of the money seized from his cryptocurrency wallets is returned to its rightful owners.’
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