A Kenyan is among six people charged in the United States over an alleged cryptocurrency scam in which fraudsters posed as women on dating sites to lure Americans into fake investments.

The US Department of Justice announced the charges on Tuesday, October 27. The suspects are from Kenya, Uganda, Cameroon and Rwanda, according to reports on the case. Investigators describe Chui Kok Wa as the leader of the operation. The case is being handled by the US Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia, led by Jeanine Ferris Pirro, through its Scam Center Strike Force.

How the scheme allegedly worked

According to the FBI affidavit unsealed in the case, the suspects:

  • Posed as attractive women on dating websites and built relationships with their targets.
  • Persuaded victims to connect their cryptocurrency wallets to fraudulent websites offering non-fungible token (NFT) investments.
  • Tricked victims into granting unlimited spending approvals on their wallets, then drained the funds without their knowledge.

The affidavit puts losses at a minimum of $516,695 (about Sh66.7 million) across 74 cryptocurrency wallets linked to victims. Some reports cite around 800 victims, but other outlets note that figure is not a confirmed count of individual US victims.

Stolen funds were allegedly moved to cryptocurrency accounts tied to China-based actors. US authorities have seized the websites linked to the scheme.

Scam compounds in Madagascar

The US State Department says a criminal group with links to Malaysia and China set up scam compounds in Madagascar in early 2025, likely after moving the operation from Cambodia following a crackdown there.

The US Scam Center Strike Force earlier sent a team to Madagascar to help local police take down Chinese-run scam compounds, an operation that led to hundreds of arrests.

Pirro has called on Madagascar to extradite the six defendants to the United States.

A warning for Kenyans

The case adds to a string of crypto and forex fraud cases with Kenyan links. Just this week, the Directorate of Criminal Investigations arrested a suspect over a separate Sh4.95 million forex and crypto fraud and warned Kenyans to be wary of online investment offers promising quick returns.

The charges are allegations, and the suspects are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.

Photos: Satheesh Sankaran via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0); US Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia via FOX 5 DC. Thumbnail design: HAMASTA MEDIA.