Overview
- Synchronized operations managed from Eurojust’s Hague headquarters between October 27 and 30 led to arrests and searches in Cyprus, Germany and Spain.
- Authorities seized €800,000 in bank funds, €415,000 in cryptocurrency, €300,000 in cash and luxury watches valued at €100,000, with several properties under appraisal.
- Prosecutors say the network ran dozens of sham crypto-investment sites and lured victims using social media ads, cold calls, fake news articles and fabricated celebrity testimonials.
- French investigators estimate at least €610 million to roughly €700 million was laundered through wallets and exchanges, underscoring the gap with assets recovered so far.
- The probe grew from 2023 complaints escalated by France’s JUNALCO, a judicial investigation opened on June 4, 2025, and suspects now face six charges carrying 5–10 year prison terms and fines up to €1 million.