Three men suspects in €1.37 million cryptocurrency ponzi scheme
A court has remanded two suspects in custody on suspicion of running a fraudulent cryptocurrency investment scheme which took in close to one-and-a-half million euros.
Three Estonian men were detained by the Central Criminal Police, with two of them being remanded in custody for up to two months by a court, following a request from the Prosecutor's Office.
The pair have been incarcerated over fears of continued criminal activities if freed.
Between November 2023 and November 2025, investors reportedly transferred a total of approximately €1.37 million to companies and personal bank accounts linked to the suspects.
The accused spread false information about virtual currencies via various social media and network marketing platforms, as well as at public seminars; the gang had, according to preliminary information, been presenting false information to the public as well as to selected private individuals and companies since 2022.
The suspicion is the group withheld essential information and shaped data on the products on offer as presented in a way misleading to investors.
Among other claims, the group said that a cryptocurrency token they were developing would be listed on an exchange, and could in the future reach a value similar to that of Bitcoin.
In fact, nearly half the funds taken in were embezzled by the gang for their own use.
State Prosecutor Jürgen Hüva said that preliminary information indicates that investors were essentially given unfounded promises.
"Investors were led to believe that their money would be directed into the development of virtual currencies and projects expected to generate returns in the future, but in reality no such investment activity took place. The data gathered so far in the investigation suggests that part — around 40 percent — of the funds intended for investment was used by the suspects for personal expenses rather than for developing the promised projects," Hüva noted.
All three men are suspected of committing an offense under Section 211(1) of the Penal Code, namely presenting false information to the public or a defined group of persons in order to obtain investments.
The investigation is being conducted by the Central Criminal Police and led by the Prosecutor's Office, as is standard in such cases in Estonia.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Mirjam Mäekivi
