Fake crypto bot scammer allegedly told investors, ‘Poof, you’re a millionaire’

Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge

Robert Robb allegedly convinced respective crypto investors to nonstop him $1.5 cardinal to physique a too-good-to-be-true crypto trading bot, according to an FBI affidavit viewed by 404 Media and CourtWatch.

Robb allegedly sent a connection reading, “Poof, YOU’RE A MILLIONAIRE” to 1 Telegram group, accompanied by this representation of a purple fairy wearing a mushroom cap. The connection promised recipients they could onslaught it affluent if they utilized Robb’s MEV bot and invested successful the cryptocurrency $RAT and the ironically named token NoRugz.

Image: FBI affidavit, Case No. 1:24-MJ-100 A screenshot of a Telegram connection allegedly sent by Robert Robb to prospective investors.

It says Robb asked crypto investors implicit Telegram and different societal media for wealth to physique a “Maximum Extractable Value” oregon MEV, crypto trading bot. But aft investors sent the funds, the bot ne'er materialized. Investors interviewed by the FBI said that Robb made aggregate excuses for the bot’s hold and ne'er complied with immoderate requests for refunds.

The bot described by Robb would supposedly scan blockchain networks to find profitable trading opportunities and execute them automatically, but there’s nary grounds that exertion tin really enactment implicit an extended period. This hasn’t stopped crypto scammers from pushing fake bots connected YouTube, X, and different societal media sites and making improbable promises of 10x to 100x returns connected their investments.

Robb often posted astir the MEV bot helium was gathering connected X and the crypto societal media level Friend.Tech. In DMs to investors, helium claimed helium had built a prototype of a bot that was bully capable to output “enormous returns.”

The FBI alleges that implicit the people of a fewer weeks successful 2023, Robb collected astatine slightest $1.5 cardinal from investors. But alternatively of the funds going toward gathering a crypto trading bot, Robb transferred astir of the wealth to his idiosyncratic slope accounts. The FBI’s reappraisal of Robb’s fiscal transactions indicated that helium spent immoderate of the wealth connected a two-year lease of an enforcement suite astatine the Denver Broncos Mile High Stadium, a luxury Jeep, and a enactment astatine a abrogation edifice successful the Bahamas.

The 46-year-old Robb was arrested successful Las Vegas connected March 20th, according to a screenshot of records from the Henderson Police posted by crypto detective ZachXBT connected X. The Verge has reached retired to Henderson County to petition Robb’s constabulary records.

Robb, who posts connected X nether the grip pokerbrat2019, claims successful his bio that helium is simply a past unfortunate of extortion. Over the past year, he’s tweeted often astir MEV bots and often warned his followers to look retired for crypto scams.

Robb hasn’t posted since the time of his arrest. His past post, published astatine 12:38PM ET connected the greeting of his arrest, chided his followers for being “far excessively predictable” and promised an upcoming Solana bot.