Quebec Resident Lost $205,000 to a Crypto Scammer – Here’s What Happened

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Tim Alper

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Tim Alper

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Tim Alper is a British journalist and features writer who has worked at Cryptonews.com since 2018. He has written for media outlets such as the BBC, the Guardian, and Chosun Ilbo. He has also worked...

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June 25, 2023

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A resident of Quebec, Canada, has explained how he was duped out of almost $205,000 worth of tokens in an elaborate crypto scam.

Speaking to TVA Nouvelles, the man – a 63-year-old father of three named Jean Séguin – explained that he first became engaged with the scammer that left him out of pocket in May last year.

Séguin, who hails from Quebec’s Gatineau, explained that he was contacted by a “friendly” individual. This individual’s call “allowed the scammer to build a bond of trust with his victim.”

How Was Victim Duped by Crypto Scammer?

The scammer, Séguin said, encouraged him to invest in crypto via the Coinberry platform, as well as Crypto.com.

Séguin said that he spent $205,000 on crypto in a six-month period. But the scammer then appears to have persuaded Séguin to transfer his funds to another platform – named “DexCrypto.” 

The scammer allegedly told Séguin that doing so would allow him to receive “daily income” worth more than 2% of his original stake.

Séguin explained that “amicable conversations on social networks” convinced him that moving all of his tokens to the platform would “improve his returns.”

Some six months later, Séguin realized he had “fallen into a trap,” and no longer had access to the coins in his wallets.

He reported the case to the police, and even took the matter up with the American FBI and private detective agencies. But he has thus far failed to recover his tokens.

Séguin said:

“In a personal manner I was scammed by this person.”

The father of three stated that he had gone public with his case in an attempt to help others avoid falling victim to similar scams.

Andrée East, of the Gatineau Police Department, was quoted as stating that crypto scammers were making “small variations” to existing scams as well as hatching “completely new schemes.”

East said:

“[Scammers] take advantage of new technologies such as […] cryptocurrency. Often, [they dupe victims] out of very significant amounts of money.”

In January this year, an Ontario man claimed that he had lost his home and his life savings to YouTube-based crypto scammers.