Crypto fraudster stole £250k for spending spree

A woman conned victims out of thousands of pounds before spending almost £250,000 on jewellery, travel, home improvements, vehicles and takeaway food.

Nottinghamshire Police said Faisa Ali took money from a large number of investors for her cryptocurrency company over a two-year period from 2021 to 2023 and made guarantees their cash could not be lost.

However, she sent a text message to the investor WhatsApp group in March 2023 which stated she had made poor decisions and lost all their money.

The 34-year-old, of Palin Street, Radford, was given a three-year prison sentence suspended for three years at Nottingham Crown Court on Monday and was ordered to carry out 300 hours unpaid work.

The force said it opened an investigation after angry investors turned up at Ali's home and she called the police.

Officers said 23 victims, nearly all from Somali communities across the UK, including Nottingham, Sheffield, Birmingham and London, provided witness statements and one person had lost more than £40,000.

Detectives established Ali had been fully aware the value of almost all crypto currencies had fallen dramatically and consistently over the 18-month period she operated the scheme, but had continued to use money from new investors to fund a "luxury lifestyle".

Bank statements from 18 October 2021 to 22 March 2023 showed she splashed out £76,140 on jewellery, £40,845 on travel, £65,183 on home furnishings and improvements, £41,625 on vehicle purchases and payments, and £24,030 on fast food.

The force said a proceeds of crime hearing, which is due to take place at a later date, could result in Ali being stripped of any cash and assets.

Det Con Simon Jones said: "This was a complex investigation into a calculating fraudster who systematically exploited the trust of numerous victims, stealing thousands of pounds in the process.

"Many of those targeted were not wealthy individuals. They had worked hard, saved carefully and, in some cases, borrowed money in the hope of securing a better future.

"For many of them, years and even decades of saving have been wiped out, leaving them with nothing."

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