A crypto fraudster who was arrested naked in bed after pocketing £4million in a “fake police scam” has been jailed.
Kevin Nwamma, 25, looked stunned as Metropolitan Police officers entered his bedroom in Watford in November, handcuffing him naked.
Nwamma, alongside Anthony Ikenwe, 29 and Hamza Bashir, 23, operated a scam where they impersonated police officers and defrauded eight people of more than £4million in cryptocurrency.
The gang were sentenced at Southwark Crown Court today, with the three men jailed for a total of 13 years and nine months.
Their scam involved impersonating police officers, telling their victims that their cryptocurrency is at risk.
They persuaded their victims to either provide account details or transfer funds to what they believed to be secure accounts.
The gang had developed convincing-looking websites, where the cryptocurrency was immediately stolen and laundered through a complicated financial network, the Met said.
Their victims reported the fraud to the police in January 2025, triggering an investigation.
Hamza Bashir enjoyed an opulent lifestyle on stolen cryptocurrency
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METROPOLITAN POLICE
Officers discovered the three men were living a life of luxury, going on expensive holidays, purchasing cars, designer clothes and jewellery.
Examples of their extravagant purchases included a £60,000 car purchased with cryptocurrency, holidays to Thailand, Japan, Paris, Mykonos, the Maldives and Seychelles.
Police also found approximately £500,000 in cash in a safety deposit box in Dubai.
The lavish lifestyle did not match their recorded incomes, with one of the men only earning on paper £444 a year.
A data-driven approach was used during the investigation, the Met said, which analysed blockchain transactions, financial records, cryptocurrency exchange records and internet service provider data.
The evidence gathered by the police revealed an organised criminal network, which operated across multiple jurisdictions and platforms.
From left to right: Anthony Ikenwe, Hamza Bashir and Kevin Nwamma
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METROPOLITAN POLICE
Detective Inspector Geoff Donoghue, from the Metropolitan Police’s Cryptocurrency Team, said: “This was a highly complex investigation into a group of calculated manipulators who exploited victims’ trust by pretending to be police officers and spent other people’s money to fund their extravagant lifestyles.
“The Met’s Cryptocurrency Team painstakingly traced millions of pounds, combining a wide range of investigative techniques to dismantle a significant criminal network.
“Criminals should be under no illusion – policing is evolving alongside technology.
“We have the capabilities to trace and seize high-value assets, and we will do everything in our power to identify those responsible for these fraudulent crimes and bring them to justice.”
The Met executed coordinated arrests on November 20 last year at seven addresses across London and Essex.
They arrested all three men, seizing their devices, including 40 mobile phones.
Police recovered approximately £1million of victims’ funds, while digital forensics uncovered extensive evidence of the conspiracy.
The naked fraudster and one of his co-conspirators, Ikenwe, pleaded guilty in April to defraud with money laundering offences.
Bashir at first denied involvement and stood trial before changing his plea on the eighth day of proceedings.
The men were charged the following day and have remained in custody until today, where they were sentenced and subsequently jailed.
Nwamma, of Clarendon Road, Watford, was sentenced to six years for conspiracy to commit fraud and five years for money laundering to run concurrently.
Ikenwe, of Bata Mews, East Tilbury, was sentenced to six years for conspiracy to commit fraud and five years for money laundering to run concurrently.
Bashir, of Beverley Way, Wimbledon, was sentenced to three years and nine months for conspiracy to commit fraud and three years for money laundering to run concurrently.