Officers surprise gang member who helped con victims out of millions by posing as policeman
A fraudster involved in a £4m cryptocurrency scam was arrested while naked in bed, police footage has shown.
Kevin Nwamma was visibly shaken when officers entered his bedroom in Watford on Nov 20 and handcuffed him during a raid.
The 25-year-old was part of a three-man gang that stole money from victims by posing as police officers. The group used their spoils to buy cars, designer clothing and fund shopping trips to Harrods, Hermès and Louis Vuitton.
The gang targeted eight victims between January and July last year, telling them their cryptocurrency accounts had been compromised and persuading them to transfer funds for “safe keeping”.
They created fake police websites to trick victims into handing over access to their cryptocurrency, which was then stolen and laundered.
Nwamma was arrested after cryptocurrency transfers from stolen wallets were traced to bank accounts linked to his chauffeur business. At Southwark Crown Court, he was sentenced to six years in prison for conspiracy to commit fraud and five years for money laundering, with the sentences to run concurrently.
Hamza Bashir, a 23-year-old accomplice from Wimbledon, south-west London, was jailed for three years and nine months, while Anthony Ikenwe, a 29-year-old accomplice from East Tilbury in Essex, received a six-year sentence.
Police seized digital devices including 40 mobile phones during the investigation, and recovered around £1m in stolen funds.
Detectives discovered the gang had enjoyed a playboy lifestyle, despite one member declaring an annual income of £444.
The group bought a car worth almost £60,000 using cryptocurrency, and kept £500,000 in a Dubai safety deposit box.
They also spent money on holidays to destinations including Thailand, Japan, Paris, Greece, the Maldives and the Seychelles.
Det Insp Geoff Donoghue, of the Metropolitan Police’s cryptocurrency team, said: “This was a highly complex investigation into a group of calculated manipulators who exploited victims’ trust by pretending to be police officers and spent other people’s money to fund their extravagant lifestyles.
“The Met’s cryptocurrency team painstakingly traced millions of pounds, combining a wide range of investigative techniques to dismantle a significant criminal network.
“Criminals should be under no illusion – policing is evolving alongside technology. We have the capabilities to trace and seize high-value assets, and we will do everything in our power to identify those responsible for these fraudulent crimes and bring them to justice.”
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