An Arizona couple is reportedly out $20,000 after a Chase Bank employee accidentally unfroze funds taken by a scammer.

In March, the couple received a text asking if they authorized a $399 Zelle payment to “Susan Smith,” according to a new report from 12 News.

They replied “No” and were given a number to call. After calling the number, someone on the other line who was claiming to be a bank employee said the couple’s account had been flagged for fraud. The scammer on the phone also told the couple that it looked like it was  an “inside job.”

Following instructions, the couple went to a Chase Bank and withdrew $20,000 and then opened a new account through Apple Wallet, depositing the money there.

The scammer then stole the money, but employees at Chase Bank managed to freeze the funds later that day. A few days later, however, someone at the bank unfroze the account, allowing the con artist to make off with the money.

Chase has contacted the couple and told them that their case is still open. Peoria police tell 12 News that they’ve identified a suspect in Florida.

A similar incident in Arizona occurred last month when a scammer reportedly drained $27,000 in life savings from a man in Arizona by pretending to be his bank representative.

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Disclaimer: Opinions expressed at The Daily Hodl are not investment advice. Investors should do their due diligence before making any high-risk investments in Bitcoin, cryptocurrency or digital assets. Please be advised that your transfers and trades are at your own risk, and any losses you may incur are your responsibility. The Daily Hodl does not recommend the buying or selling of any cryptocurrencies or digital assets, nor is The Daily Hodl an investment advisor. Please note that The Daily Hodl participates in affiliate marketing.

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The Bitcoin art world has suffered a blow as the enigmatic statue of Bitcoin’s pseudonymous creator, Satoshi Nakamoto, has vanished from its current home in Lugano, Switzerland. The Satoshigallery, which curated and displayed the piece, has announced a reward of 0.1 BTC to anyone who can help recover the stolen statue, further deepening the mystery that shrouds both Satoshi Nakamoto and this distinctive work of art.

The Satoshigallery team took to X following the theft to offer a reward for its recovery and to reinforce its determination to place 21 Satoshi statues around the world. This mission is meant to echo Bitcoin’s 21 million coin limit, reinforcing the principles of scarcity, decentralization, and indestructibility. The gallery wrote:

“You can steal our symbol but you will never be able to steal our souls.”

Embodying the spirit of Satoshi Nakamoto

The statue was celebrated not just as a physical memorial, but for its conceptual brilliance. Designed to embody the spirit of Bitcoin’s elusive creator, the piece plays with perception and meaning, appearing invisible from the front, a clever nod to Nakamoto’s anonymity.

When viewed from the side, the form emerges, reminding viewers that Satoshi may be hidden, but always present within Bitcoin’s ethos, capturing how Nakamoto’s indelible impact remains at the very core of the crypto movement.

Support from the Bitcoin community

Messages of support have poured in from around the world, with members of the Bitcoin community expressing solidarity. For many, the statue is more than just art; it is a symbol of resilience, innovation, and the ongoing quest for financial sovereignty.

Tuur Demeester, Blockstream advisor and Bitcoin OG, commented:

“Very sad… Next one should maybe be in a few cubics of granite”

Founder of TIP Preston Pysh simply said:

“Even his statue disappears…”

As the search continues, the story of Satoshi (the person and the statue) reaffirms that some mysteries, in the digital age, only grow stronger with every attempt to erase them.

Anyone with information regarding the whereabouts of the statue of Satoshi Nakamoto is encouraged to contact the Satoshigallery team.

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Crypto Journalist

Amin Ayan

Crypto Journalist

Amin Ayan

About Author

Amin Ayan is a crypto journalist with over four years of experience in the industry. He has contributed to leading publications such as Cryptonews, Investing.com, 99Bitcoins, and 24/7 Wall St. He has…

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August 3, 2025

A massive Bitcoin theft from 2020 has surfaced nearly four years later, and it’s now being called the largest crypto heist ever uncovered.

On Saturday, blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence reported that 127,426 BTC, valued at around $3.5 billion at the time and nearly $14.5 billion today, was stolen from Chinese mining pool LuBian in December 2020.

LuBian rose quickly in early 2020, becoming the sixth-largest mining pool on the Bitcoin network by mid-year.

Its website promoted it as “the safest high yielding mining pool in the world.”

LuBian Vanished in 2021, Sparking Speculation of Shutdown

By February 2021, LuBian had disappeared without explanation, fueling speculation that it was either shut down by authorities or quietly converted into a private pool.

Arkham’s investigation points to a more dramatic exit: a hack that drained the pool’s holdings.

“They appear to have been first hacked on December 28th, 2020 for over 90% of their BTC,” Arkham wrote.

The following day, attackers siphoned off another $6 million in BTC and USDT from a LuBian-linked address on the Bitcoin Omni layer.

The firm believes the Bitcoin theft stemmed from vulnerabilities in LuBian’s private key generation system, which may have allowed brute-force attacks.

While 11,886 BTC, worth roughly $1.35 billion, remains untouched in LuBian’s wallet, none of the stolen coins have moved since July 2024.

Interestingly, LuBian attempted to communicate with the attacker using Bitcoin’s OP_RETURN feature.

In two transactions, the team wrote: “To the whitehat who is saving our asset, you can contact us… to discuss the return of asset and your reward.”

The message included an email address, but it’s unclear if the hacker ever replied.

While the Mt. Gox collapse involved more BTC, the LuBian breach is the largest confirmed crypto theft by value at the time of the incident.

Bitcoin Hacks, Theft Cost Investors $2.2B in H1 2025: CertiK

Crypto investors lost over $2.2 billion to hacks, scams, and breaches in the first half of 2025, driven largely by wallet compromises and phishing attacks, according to CertiK’s latest security report.

Wallet breaches alone caused $1.7 billion in losses across just 34 incidents, while phishing scams accounted for over $410 million across 132 attacks.

Two major incidents, including Bybit’s $1.5 billion hack in February and Cetus Protocol’s $225 million exploit in May, skewed the year’s losses upward, together accounting for nearly $1.78 billion.

Without these, losses align more closely with previous years at around $690 million.

Ethereum remained the primary target, suffering over $1.6 billion in losses across 175 events.

The report also pointed to rising sophistication of phishing schemes and ongoing risks from social engineering, urging crypto users to verify links, avoid suspicious sites, and use hardware wallets.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is taking action against a former bank employee who allegedly sold check images that resulted in a six-figure loss for the lender.

The OCC says it’s issuing an order of prohibition against Cricel Santamaria, a former client service representative at Webster Bank in Stamford, Connecticut.

Says the OCC,

“From approximately April 2019 until May 23, 2022, the respondent was employed at the bank. Between approximately October 2021 and April 2022, the respondent obtained approximately 62 check images from the bank’s internal systems and made them available for sale over the internet.

Thirteen bank customers reported fraud on their accounts shortly after their checks were made available for sale on the internet. The total fraud reported was $237,374 and the total Bank loss was approximately $108,000.”

According to the OCC, Santamaria “engaged in unsafe or unsound practices, caused more than a minimal loss to the bank, demonstrated personal dishonesty and willful or continuing disregard for the safety and soundness of the bank.”

The OCC order prohibits the ex-banker from working in the banking and financial services industry.

Santamaria consents to the OCC order without admitting or denying any wrongdoing. Under the order, the Department of Justice (DOJ) retains its right to “bring other actions deemed appropriate” against Santamaria.

The Webster Bank, a commercial bank based in Stamford, Connecticut, has more than $70 billion in assets under management.

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Greek authorities carried out the country’s first-ever crypto seizure after tracing funds linked to the record-breaking $1.4 billion hack of crypto exchange Bybit earlier this year.

The Hellenic Anti-Money Laundering Authority issued a freezing order on a suspect wallet following a months-long investigation aided by blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis.

The operation targeted funds allegedly stolen in February’s Bybit breach, which has been widely attributed to North Korea’s Lazarus Group.

The Bybit hack, which ranks among the largest crypto exchange breaches in history, saw attackers exploit vulnerabilities in the platform’s private key management systems to drain roughly $1.4 billion worth of Ethereum (ETH).

The stolen funds were rapidly laundered through an intricate web of blockchain transactions designed to obscure their origins, making recovery efforts challenging for global authorities.

The Greek seizure marked a milestone for local law enforcement in digital crime prevention. It was made possible by the Authority’s strategic investment in Chainalysis Reactor in 2023, a blockchain tracing platform procured through regional partner Performance Technologies.

The local technology provider also provided analysts with training and operational support ahead of the case. Using Reactor, Greek investigators tracked suspicious crypto transactions that ultimately linked a suspect wallet to the original Bybit theft.

Officials then froze the assets, removing control from illicit actors and transferring the case to prosecuting authorities for further legal action.

Kyriakos Pierrakakis, Greece’s Minister of Economy and Finance, hailed the seizure as a demonstration of modern tools strengthening anti-financial crime efforts.

Analysts said the successful seizure underlines how blockchain’s public ledger can aid global law enforcement despite sophisticated laundering tactics employed by groups like Lazarus, which has targeted crypto exchanges worldwide to fund North Korea’s weapons programs.

Chainalysis described the case as proof that combining technology, training, and international cooperation can erode criminal anonymity and bolster trust in digital asset markets.

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