Undercover cops have arrested Peter Foster, a serial conman who has been defrauding unsuspecting victims with the pretense of being a man named Bill Dawson.
Foster now faces fraud charges in the Sydney court as police allege that he netted $1.24 million worth of Bitcoin in his illegal operation using his fake identity.
According to reports from local media today, the Sydney City police said that starting April last year, Konstantinos Stylianopoulous sent Foster, who posed as Bill Dawson, Bitcoin worth $89,778, and $639,220 on various occasions.
After the transactions were made, the 57-year-old conman allegedly transferred the Bitcoin into his account at Independent Reserve, a cryptocurrency financial institution.
Foster was arrested on August 20 during a beach walk in Port Douglas, Queensland, by two detectives who posed as early morning joggers.
Investigations into conman’s activities commenced in June, the Sydney City Police Area Commander Detective Acting Superintendent Paul Dunstan said, adding that Foster is a significant fraud offender who has been involved in several offenses over the years.
Aside from the police, IFW Global, a private company that investigates fraud, cybercrime, and assets recovery also claimed that they have been tailing Foster.
Ken Gamble, IFW’s chairman, said he was contacted earlier this year by an Asian man who believed that Foster had duped him. Gamble admitted that IFW had been monitoring Foster for a month and had a comprehensive profile of his activities in a statement that was released on August 20.
Foster was refused bail and was extradited to NSW where he faces five counts of publishing false and misleading material to obtain advantage and ten counts of dishonestly obtaining financial position by deception and dealing with its proceeds with intent to conceal.
Still on crime, Coinfomania reported in March that over A$100 million worth of cryptocurrencies were lost to fraudsters through phone calls with more than 20 Australians being victims of the crypto scam.
