UK police are attempting to recover a victim’s funds after a scammer stole £2.1 million ($2.8 million) in Bitcoin by pretending to be a senior police officer.
The North Wales Police Cyber Crime team said on Tuesday that it is investigating the theft, describing the case as “a disturbing new trend targeting long-term crypto holders who store their assets in cold wallets.”
Authorities added that the victim may have been identified in a data breach, making the attack “a highly targeted and sophisticated scam.”
Scammers posing as law enforcement or government officials have long been a concern in the UK and abroad, with schemes ranging from simple payment requests to complex, multi-step operations designed to conceal the fraud.
Scammer poses as officer to steal crypto, police report
North Wales Police reported that a victim was approached by a scammer “posing as a senior UK law enforcement officer.”
The fraudster claimed to have arrested someone whose phone contained the victim’s identification documents, warning that this could expose them to a range of security risks.
Using a “sense of fear and urgency,” the scammer instructed the victim to “secure their assets” by accessing their crypto cold wallet through a link provided by the fake officer, police said.
“The victim, worried and believing that they were following police instructions, entered their seed phrase (password) into what was a sophisticated, fake website.”
The scammers, now with total control and access to the wallet, withdrew the $2.8 million worth of Bitcoin within.
Cops say to verify, not trust
North Wales Police said it is working to trace and recover the stolen funds while advising crypto holders on how to confirm they are dealing with legitimate officers.
“Police will NEVER call you unexpectedly about your crypto assets or ask you to take action on your cold storage device. That’s a major red flag,” the team said.
They recommended hanging up on suspicious calls and contacting the police directly to verify any claim of law enforcement. Officers would never ask for a crypto seed phrase.
“Scammers are constantly evolving their tactics,” North Wales Police added. “They’re not just targeting new investors—they’re designing sophisticated social engineering schemes to deceive even the most careful holders.”
Authorities alert public to rising impersonation scams
Earlier this month, the US FBI warned that scammers are impersonating crypto exchange employees, reaching out to potential victims with claims of account issues to steal information that grants access to their accounts.
In May, the FBI also cautioned that attackers were using AI-powered deepfakes to mimic senior US officials in voice messages, targeting primarily current or former federal and state government employees.
