A man accused of running a large-scale crypto romance scam was given a heavy federal sentence this week. According to court records and Justice Department statements, Daren Li, a dual national of China and St. Kitts and Nevis, received 20 years in prison for his role in a scheme that sent more than $73 million out of victims’ hands.
Trust Built Online
Li and a group of associates set up fake trading sites and copied the look of real platforms to make everything appear legitimate. They reached out through social media and dating apps, building friendly or romantic ties that made victims comfortable enough to move money.
The approach was slow and patient; messages were exchanged for weeks, sometimes months, before the ask came. Reports note the team used a practice the industry calls “pig butchering” — grooming targets until they trusted the strangers on the other end of the chat.
How Crypto Moved
Court filings show the cash did not simply disappear. Money flowed into bank accounts tied to shell companies inside the US, then onward to other conduits.
Nearly $60 million was routed this way, according to prosecutors. Eight co-conspirators have pleaded guilty and are awaiting sentencing, while the investigation continues to map out additional links.
Some transfers were hidden with layers of banking moves. At points funds were converted into cryptocurrency and moved through wallets to complicate tracing.
Investigations And International Work
Multiple federal agencies are on the case. The US Secret Service Global Investigative Operations Center led the probe, with help from Homeland Security Investigations’ El Camino Real Financial Crimes Task Force and the US Marshals Service.
Coordination across borders was required because suspects and servers were often overseas. Li slipped an electronic ankle monitor and fled in December 2025, a fact officials say made the job of bringing him to justice harder. He was captured and later admitted to conspiring to launder the money.
Bigger Pattern Of Crime
Reports say crypto-related scams spiked at the start of 2026, with one security firm estimating $370 million stolen in January alone. Phishing and social engineering ate up most of that total; a single social hack accounted for roughly $280 million.
Combining all the incidents in January we’ve confirmed ~$370.3M lost to exploits.
~$311.3M of the total is attributed to phishing with one victim losing ~$284M due to a social engineering scam.
More details below
pic.twitter.com/uXhi0P6dl5
— CertiK Alert (@CertiKAlert) January 31, 2026
Losses of this size show how attackers combine online trust-building with technical tricks to drain accounts. Back in February 2025, attackers netted about $1.5 billion in one month when a major exchange was hacked, underscoring how varied the threats can be.
The punishment handed down in the Central District of California sends a message that courts view these crypto crimes as serious. Victims will not get all their money back. Some restitution may be ordered. More prosecutions are likely as investigators follow money trails and coordinate with overseas partners.
Featured image from Cayman Compass, chart from TradingView
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