In a shocking case of crypto theft, a 19-year-old named Veer Chetal and his two accomplices stole $243 million worth of Bitcoin using a clever but illegal trick known as social engineering. They managed to drain 4,100 BTC from a single victim’s account in August 2024. The scam that initially took place at a high level soon became a bizarre story about greed and negligence, and the final apprehension was all due to a livestream and a couple of amateurs.
A fraudulent Digital Heist
The three, including Chetal, Malone Lam, and Jeandiel Serrano, engaged in a false phone call as they posed as a support employee of Google and a crypto exchange platform, Gemini. These calls deceived their victim into resetting their two-factor authentication (2FA) and gave them access to their computer screen through AnyDesk. That was when the hackers accessed the Bitcoin by seizing the personal keys of the victim and transferring the cash to their wallets.
Chetal and others divided the work: Chetal went to Gmail and iCloud, Lam searched through the mails of the victim, and Serrano played the role of the phony customer service agent. By the early morning of August 19, the scam was done, and the victim was robbed of his wallet.
How They Got Caught
The crypto community, as well as the investigators, did not waste time before launching investigations. Blockchain sleuth ZachXBT made huge contributions to outing the hackers. During the pursuit of the stolen money in over 15 exchanges, he stumbled upon something outrageous: the three had streamed it privately when they celebrated after the transfer of the Bitcoin.
Chetal revealed his name in that video accidentally. His friends also called him Veer a number of times. Lam was seen throwing millions at cars and partying in LA, and Serrano is repeating the exact photo on Discord, Telegram, and the scam live stream, so it is also not hard to associate Serrano with 18 million stolen crypto.
Eventually, all three were arrested. Lam and Serrano were officially charged in September 2024, but Chetal’s story didn’t end there.
The Second Scam and a Bigger Fall
After cooperating with authorities and pleading guilty, Chetal gave up his luxury items, including 30 watches and over $36 million in Ethereum. He was released on bond while awaiting his trial. But instead of staying quiet, he pulled off another scam.
However, this has happened again when a woman in New Jersey lost 2 million to imposters in Gemini and Google support workers who had contacted her through social engineering. It was carried out in an online gambling account to which an IP address belonging to Chetal’s home was connected when a VPN lapse occurred. He did not reject the transfer and also hereby confessed that he had lost all the amount, that is to say, 200,000 dollars, in a single bet in which it took him only nine minutes.
Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly rejected his request for a second release, citing the new crime and lack of remorse.
An Alert To The Digital-Age Families
This case shows the quick pace with which youth are getting involved in crypto crime. Other than the money, the effects are even riskier; the own parents of Chetal were nearly reaped off after the robbery. Figures on crypto are also increasing, which is why parent education in digital safety is more valuable than ever.
