When a client contacted us after losing $27,000 worth of Ethereum, we quickly realized this wasn’t a typical scam. The crypto had been transferred out of their wallet without authorization and was already moving rapidly across the blockchain.
By the time we got involved, the funds had passed through 14 different wallets. To the untrained eye, this would have looked like a dead end. But to our team, it was a trail waiting to be followed.
How the Scam Happened
The victim had connected their wallet to what appeared to be a legitimate DeFi platform. The site looked professional. It had a working dashboard, fake social media reviews, and even real-time price feeds.
But one click gave the scammer full approval permissions to move tokens. Within seconds, the ETH was gone.
Following the Digital Breadcrumbs
Using advanced blockchain forensics tools, we began tracing the movement of funds. Every time the ETH was transferred, we logged:
- Timestamps
- Wallet addresses
- Exchange interactions
- On-chain mixing activity
We discovered that the stolen crypto was routed through multiple hops — likely in an attempt to launder it. Some of these wallets had been used in previous phishing scams. Others interacted with known centralized exchanges.
Where the Trail Led
Eventually, we found a wallet that interacted with a major exchange based in Europe — and it still held part of the stolen ETH.
With the client’s consent, we prepared a legal recovery request and submitted it through the exchange’s fraud and compliance channels. Our report included:
- A complete wallet flowchart
- The victim’s original transaction hash
- Proof of wallet control
- Screenshots from the phishing site
The Outcome
After several follow-ups, the exchange froze the wallet and worked with us to return the stolen funds. The client recovered $19,800 in Ethereum — roughly 73% of the original amount.
Key Takeaways
- Blockchain doesn’t lie — even multi-hop laundering can be traced.
- Time is critical. The faster you act, the better your chances.
- Even professional-looking DeFi sites can be traps.
- Most recovery success comes from pairing on-chain analysis with legal strategy.
Think You’ve Been Scammed? Don’t Wait.
If you’ve lost crypto and think it’s unrecoverable, talk to us. At Lost Coin Rescue, we combine forensic tools, legal support, and direct exchange communication to maximize your chances of recovery.
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