US prosecutors seek to recover $7.1 million in cryptocurrency related to an oil and gas investment fraud case

According to The Block, the US Attorney's Office for the Western District of Washington has initiated a civil recovery lawsuit against $7.1 million in cryptocurrency involved in an oil and gas investment fraud case. The prosecutor accuses 47 year old Geoffrey K. Auyeung and his accomplices of deceiving investors into transferring funds into a so-called "crude oil tank custody account", promising to profit from leasing tank space. The investigation shows that the funds involved were transferred to 81 different accounts, of which $1.9 million was used to purchase assets such as Bitcoin, USDT, USDC, and Ethereum through 19 cryptocurrency accounts. Auyeung was charged with money laundering and other crimes in 2024, after $2.3 million in stolen funds had been seized from his bank account. The prosecutor stated that they will accelerate the recovery of funds to compensate the victims.