Chat with a Scammer! - Part 1
The topic of this post is a bit different from the ones that I normally write, but it's an experience that I thought was worth sharing with you.
Almost (not really) falling for a Bitcoin investment scam.
Under a regularly sunny tropical sky, on late September, I was contacted by a person named Paul T***** on Telegram. For privacy purposes, I shall refer to him simply as, "Paul".
I had no idea who Paul was, as we didn’t share a common Telegram group. When I asked for his purpose, he told me that I was "suggested' to him.
Paul's intentions were simple - he wanted to ask for my participation in a Bitcoin investment scheme that would provide returns of 3% on my deposit, every 24 hours.
So far, sounds like a lucrative, albeit dubious investment. Daily returns of 3%, or 90% monthly returns would definitely make me happier, and wealthier than I am now. But my suspicions started running high immediately after I asked "Trading?".
He sent me this in reply, showing 5 different investment tiers. The investments are part of the offerings from a company called Cryptogaint Ltd. (gaint? giant?).
Now, looking aside all the extra details for a moment; even the basic "Plan 1" shows daily returns of 15% (115% being the total returns including the deposit).
Having asked Paul regarding the difference in stated returns, he then claims that for beginners like myself, I can only get 3%. I guess once I have become a long-time investor, I could subscribe to any one of the other 5 Plans.
That said - why would he even bother showing me all the other plans in the first place, and not clarify beforehand that these other Plans are for seasoned investors?
I asked Paul as to where Cryptogaint Ltd. is based in, so that I can get a better understanding into the company; considering that he hadn't given me a link to the company's site.
Or at least…not to Cryptogaint's site. He then sent me a referral link to criscapitals.com; which having then copied, then pasted the link (never click random links) into my browser, I can confirm that it's a different company.
Paul also doesn't have any documentation to promote or detail further about the investment that he pitched to me.
At this point, I was somewhat distracted as to which company's investment he was talking about; Criscapitals or Cryptogaint.
Instead, I was more curious as to Paul's explanation about the investment. So, I then asked him simply to described the nature of the investment that he was pitching me.
Though every time I asked; Paul kept dodging. All I wanted to know, was how the investment worked; whether it was trading, hedging, or mining…
Paul's response was simply noting that my investment goes into my Bitcoin wallet, and prompted me to register and make a deposit.
At this point of the conversation; I was just confused with everything that Paul said. His dodging became more annoying, resembling an argument with a 7 year old.
To allay the back-to-back nonsense that Paul was talking, I went back to discussing as to the differences between the 2 companies that he mentioned.
Paul again dodges my questions, refusing to explain the relations between Cryptogaint, and Criscapitals. His response is simply asking me to just register through the referral link which he sent.
Needless to say, this type of conversation makes acquiring basic due diligence difficult.
At this point, Paul was starting to test my patience. Though rather than calling him out, I decided to keep Paul running along to see if he would eventually spill the beans.
Unfortunately, my efforts would prove fruitless, as again and again, Paul would spin me around in circles. If you've read Paul's messages in any of these photos, you can see that some of what he says makes no coherent sense in any mind.
I was trying to make it clear to him; that neither I, nor any sensible investor would make an investment, without knowing where the investment goes to. Despite that, Paul kept asking me to just register and make a deposit.
I even pointed out to Paul; that if my investments were to yield without anything going in between, then that, is a Ponzi scheme.
Regardless, right near the end of our conversation (and my state of mind), Paul suddenly claims that his investment pitch can make even better returns.
Talk about sweetening the pot!
I can understand that his statement on 3x returns could be a typo of 3%. But he's then claiming that I can get $2500 on a $1000 investment, after 24 hours.
That’s a 2.5x ROI (return on investment) in just 24 hours; which is higher than any value that Paul has confirmed to me.
The End?
To conclude Paul's one conversation with me, he managed to pitch me 4 different investments, all varying in returns, and each coming from different, sketchy companies.
Without wishing to make this post too long, and to protect your sanity; I'll be posting Part 2 in the next couple of days.
Coming up in Part 2; I will begin to disseminate some of the info that Paul had shared with me. I will then share my analysis with you, to finally decide whether they are, or are not scams.