Cryptocurrency broker MUFG Pro appears to be engaged in fraud against California consumers

The California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) has received a complaint from at least one California resident regarding a crypto investment.

The victim met “Dylan Lee” on Zoosk and started communicating with him on WhatsApp. Dylan told the victim he invested in Bitcoin and invited her to invest. The victim made an initial investment of $3,000. Dylan then told the victim her account was now worth $250,00 with interest. Dylan told the victim to withdraw the money from MUFG Pro, but they told the victim she had to pay $42,000 in taxes.  Then MUFG Pro told the victim her account was frozen and she had to pay $32,00 to unfreeze it. After she paid that, she was told to pay more money to a third party to deal with another issue with her account. The victim finally realized it was a scam. The company operated the websites at https://www.mu-fgpro.info and Mufg-Pro.com.

This appears to be what is commonly called an “Advance Fee scheme,” which can take many forms, as discussed here:  https://www.fbi.gov/scams-and-safety/common-scams-and-crimes/advance-fee-schemes. This also appears to be what’s known as a Romance Scam, which is described here: https://dfpi.ca.gov/2022/05/20/romance-scams-and-crypto-assets-fact-or-fraud/

The DFPI urges consumers to exercise extreme caution before responding to any solicitation offering investment or financial services.  To check whether an investment or financial service provider is licensed in California, consumers may contact the Department for questions or inquiries at ask.dfpi@dfpi.ca.gov or call toll-free at (866) 275-2677.  If a consumer believes a person or company has violated state law or acted improperly regarding a consumer financial product or service, they may file a formal complaint with the DFPI at https://dfpi.ca.gov/file-a-complaint/.