Scam Type

Fraudulent Trading Platform, ICO Fraud

Red Flag

  • Fake COO.
  • Supplier fallout.
  • Rapid fund drainage post-ICO

Details

The victim joined a trading blog on social media, where he met two individuals—“Mr. Charlie” and “Tina”—claiming to represent Fitbela Epro Limited, a UK-based Forex trading firm. They persuaded him to open a Forex trading account on the Meta 5 Trading platform and promised high returns. The victim initially invested $10,000 and was told the account had grown significantly, prompting him to invest even more. Following their direction, he eventually sent a total of $92,000 via wire transfer. Later, they claimed his account was now worth $200,000. When the victim attempted to withdraw his funds, he was told he needed to pay $87,000 in taxes before any money could be released. At that point, he recognized it as a scam.

Scammer Behaviour

Used fake identities, failed supplier contracts, and drained funds, potentially tied to other scams.

Potential Lost Funds

$2,400,000+

Final Outcome

Funds stolen; U.K. law enforcement notified; no recovery reported.