Bitcoin millionaire Aarni Otava Saarimaa, 22 years old, has lost over 5,564 BTC (worth an estimated USD 35 Million) in a Thai crypto scam. The Finnish businessman was approached in June 2017 by the hackers.
Reported in the Bangkok Post, the Finnish bitcoin millionaire Aarni Otava Saarimaa lost over 5,564 BTC, sending them to fraudsters in Thailand. He believed he was investing in Dragon Coin, as well as a casino.
When no returns on the investments were seen, Chonnikan Kaeosali, the business partner of Saarimaa, filed a complaint with the CSD. It should be noted that this is not a basic scam where Saarimaa simply sent $35 million in BTC to an address. It was sophisticated, and Saarimaa was at one point brought to a casino, to convince him that Dragon Coin would be used there. To add even more mystery to an elaborate crime plot, the syndicate was run by a local movie star.
Bitcoin is one of the easier coins to track, and studies have shown that it is traceable with the right tools, and does not even require significant levels of sophistication. Other privacy-related coins, such as Dash, Monero, and zCash, are far more difficult to trace. While many people will turn to these coins to avoid government censorship, if they are stolen, there will be little the authorities can do to help.