Fake Flare Network Site Stole $8.5 Million Worth of XRP in South Korea
Last October, a fake staking site called Fake Flare Network operated for eight days and stole $8.5 million worth of XRP from 71 investors.
The site impersonated Flare Network and FXRP, promising monthly returns of 1.5% to 1.8%, with the principal guaranteed. However, it was actually a scam designed to trick investors into withdrawing their XRP from local exchanges and transferring it to wallets controlled by the scammers via offshore platforms.
The site shut down on October 23, and the operators disappeared. The Seoul police tracked down assets worth $18.8 million related to the fraud and froze $17.3 billion won. Two individuals linked to the scam were referred to prosecutors on charges of aggravated fraud, while another person is being prosecuted for forgery.
The police issued 54 search and seizure warrants related to the fraud and arrested one suspect who had returned from abroad and was hiding. This case highlights South Korean police's zero-tolerance policy against cryptocurrency scams this year, with warnings to investors to verify official sources before sending funds.