A cross-border investigation has led to the takedown of a massive crypto fraud operation in Spain, with international law enforcement partners playing a key role.
On June 25, Spanish authorities, with backing from Estonia, France, and the United States, arrested five individuals allegedly connected to a scheme that laundered roughly €460 million ($496.8 million).
Over 5,000 victims were affected by the scam, which leveraged a global web of financial accounts and crypto transactions to move funds through Hong Kong and other jurisdictions.
Crypto, cash, and coordinated laundering
The dismantled network reportedly operated an extensive infrastructure for collecting and obscuring illicit funds. According to Europol, which began assisting in 2023, the criminal organization used a mix of bank transfers, cash withdrawals, and cryptocurrency transactions to gather and distribute funds.
Much of the laundering activity was routed through a corporate and banking structure based in Hong Kong, relying on various user accounts and exchanges registered under different names to obscure fund movements.
Authorities noted that payment gateways and front companies were essential tools in the operation, enabling the group to receive, store, and redirect the proceeds of fraud with minimal visibility.
A Europol crypto specialist was deployed to Spain on the day of the operation to support local investigators, contributing to the real-time dismantling of the network.
While five arrests were confirmed, the investigation remains active and ongoing.
Europol warns of online fraud acceleration
This case forms part of a broader concern among European enforcement agencies over the rise of online fraud.
In its March 2025 EU SOCTA (Serious and Organised Criminal Threat Assessment) report, Europol identified online financial scams, including those involving crypto, as one of the top threats to internal security.
The agency expects the threat to grow, particularly as artificial intelligence continues to enhance the sophistication of social engineering tactics and expand access to personal data.
In addition to Spain’s Guardia Civil, the international operation included support from France’s New Caledonia National Gendarmerie, Estonia’s Police and Border Guard Board, and U.S. Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
