Share this article
Alleged Bitcoin Scammer Busted By Dubai Police
Police in Dubai have reportedly arrested a man accused stealing bitcoins from several individuals.
By Stan Higgins
Updated Sep 11, 2021, 12:36 p.m. Published Nov 9, 2016, 4:37 p.m.
Police in Dubai have reportedly arrested a man accused stealing bitcoins from several individuals.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
sources report that three Dubai citizens were defrauded after connecting online with someone claiming to be a bitcoin buyer who wanted to purchase the digital currency at a premium.
According to Dubai police officials, those affected apparently let the suspect access their bitcoin wallets during the sale. Once inside, those accounts were emptied, with just over $100,000 in bitcoin being taken.
Dubai officials are said to have expressed concern about the nature of the crime. Salim bin Salmin, deputy director of the Dubai Police’s Cybercrimes Department, told regional news service 7DaysUAE.
“It’s hard to trace the money. There is no legal framework for it and UAE residents are not familiar with it or how to use it for trading.”
The suspect, who is facing fraud charges following his arrest, was reportedly arrested after police used Instagram to set up a sting operation. Officials used the social media app to create the persona of a wealthy investor looking to buy bitcoins.
”We created an account for a young man, posted pictures of him looking wealthy and put up a message that he was looking to sell 1,000 bitcoins,” Dubai Police director Khamis Mattar Al Muzaina told the publication.
After the suspect was arrested, police determined that the funds had been spent on a variety of luxury goods as well as housing costs in Dubai.
Image via Shutterstock
More For You
KuCoin captured a record share of centralised exchange volume in 2025, with more than $1.25tn traded as its volumes grew faster than the wider crypto market.
What to know:
- KuCoin recorded over $1.25 trillion in total trading volume in 2025, equivalent to an average of roughly $114 billion per month, marking its strongest year on record.
- This performance translated into an all-time high share of centralised exchange volume, as KuCoin’s activity expanded faster than aggregate CEX volumes, which slowed during periods of lower market volatility.
- Spot and derivatives volumes were evenly split, each exceeding $500 billion for the year, signalling broad-based usage rather than reliance on a single product line.
- Altcoins accounted for the majority of trading activity, reinforcing KuCoin’s role as a primary liquidity venue beyond BTC and ETH at a time when majors saw more muted turnover.
- Even as overall crypto volumes softened mid-year, KuCoin maintained elevated baseline activity, indicating structurally higher user engagement rather than short-lived volume spikes.
More For You
Bitcoin dips, but quickly recovers as U.S. captures Venezuela's Maduro
The U.S. overnight launched a military strike against Venezuela, capturing President Nicolas Maduro and his wife and extracting them from the country.
What to know:
- The U.S. captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife after a brief military operation Saturday morning, according to President Trump.
- Crypto prices suffered a brief, modest drop on the first reports of the military action, but have since recovered.
Top Stories
