Argentine blogger accused of cryptocurrency fraud
Date: 2024-12-06 Author: Oliver Abernathy Categories: IN WORLD
In Argentina, blogger Salazar was detained right on board a plane preparing to take off from Ambrosio Taravella Airport in Cordoba to Buenos Aires. The operation was carried out by employees of the Department for Combating Economic Crimes with the assistance of the airport security service. The arrest was made possible by an order from District Attorney Lourdes Quagliatti.
At the same time, Cordoba police detained her partner, 27-year-old Nicolás Gionco. The young man is suspected of active participation in a fraudulent scheme related to cryptocurrencies.
According to the prosecutor's office, Salazar and Gionco have been convincing their victims since 2022 of the possibility of receiving a stable income of 10-12% monthly from the invested amount. However, the investments resulted in losses for the clients. At least four victims are currently known, who lost a total of $22,900. Investigators do not rule out that the number of victims and the amount of damage may be significantly higher. The investigation is ongoing.
According to the National World, Salazar was active on social media, where she has more than 10,000 subscribers. Her Instagram profile contains over 500 publications demonstrating a luxurious lifestyle and traveling to exotic countries. In the account description, she called herself a "digital nomad" interested in marketing, traveling, and self-development. The blogger urged subscribers to join her "digital business", promising a complete transformation of their lives.
This case is reminiscent of the story of crypto influencer FatMan, who previously conducted an experiment to show the ease of manipulating the trust of the audience. Having created a fictitious cryptocurrency scheme, he collected $100,000 in bitcoins in a few hours. All funds were subsequently returned to investors, and he himself publicly revealed the methods of fraud.
Salazar's case raises important questions about the need for caution when investing in digital assets and seeking "advice" from influencers.
