The U.S. Secret Service has confiscated $1.5 million from the Binance wallet of Nigerian fraudster Avwerosuo Omokri, following an investigation into a cybercrime syndicate linked to multiple fraudulent investment schemes.
According to documents obtained by Peoples Gazette, Special Agent Katrina Caulfield uncovered a network of scammers operating fake online trading platforms to deceive victims. As part of the investigation, the Secret Service sought a forfeiture order for the seized funds, which were identified as proceeds of wire fraud and money laundering.
The case came to light in March 2024 when a resident of Newton, Massachusetts—referred to as Victim 1—reported losing 1.33272285 BTC in a cryptocurrency scam. She had joined a Facebook group called Financial Independence Forum, where members were lured with promises of wealth and early retirement through investment.
One of the group’s administrators, Tom Sheldon Haley, introduced himself as a trading expert and encouraged Victim 1 to invest in Trade Propel, a supposedly lucrative platform. Following his guidance, she transferred 1.3 BTC from her Coinbase account. However, when she attempted to withdraw her supposed profits, the platform demanded additional payments under the guise of “tax on earnings.”
Agent Caulfield noted that such tactics are commonly used by scammers to extract more money from victims. Investigations into the Trade Propel website revealed red flags, including a lack of verifiable company details and false claims of affiliations with industry regulators like FINRA and SIPC. The site even falsely credited hedge fund billionaires George Soros, Paul Tudor, and Ray Dalio as co-signers.
A detailed money trail analysis led the Secret Service to track the stolen funds through intermediary wallets—often used by fraudsters to obscure illicit transactions—before identifying the final destination wallet. Records from Binance confirmed that the account belonged to Avwerosuo Omokri, registered under a Nigerian passport and the email johnrichie513@gmail.com.
Further investigation revealed that multiple victims had transferred money to the same fraudulent operation. Victim 2 lost $29,000, Victim 3 lost $35,000, and a fourth victim was instructed to deposit funds into a different wallet. The scam was allegedly run by a syndicate, with lower-level operatives engaging with victims on social media while higher-level members handled the stolen funds.
Binance account records indicated that Omokri and his syndicate accessed the fraudulent wallets from four different devices, attempting to launder the stolen assets.
On February 16, 2025, Agent Caulfield formally filed for the forfeiture of the seized funds, which included significant holdings in multiple cryptocurrencies:
• 7.239 BTC
• 105.75 ETH
• 636.11 AVAX
• 14,120.99 USDT
• 2.38 billion SHIB
• 319 million PEPE
The case highlights the growing challenge of crypto-related fraud and reinforces the U.S. government’s efforts to track and dismantle cybercriminal networks.
