Crypto gang who impersonated police to steal £4million before splurging on luxury holidays, cars and Rolexes are jailed

By FRANCINE WOLFISZ, NEWS REPORTER Published: 13:50, 16 July 2026 | Updated: 13:53, 16 July 2026 Crypto fraudsters posed as police officers to steal more than £4million and fund a playboy lifestyle of designer cars, Rolexes and exotic holidays. Anthony Ikenwe, 29, Kevin Nwamma, 25, and Hamza Bashir, 23, called their victims claiming to be from the police before telling them their cryptocurrency was at risk.  They persuaded eight of them to provide account details or transfer the funds to what the victims believed were secure police accounts - but which in fact belonged to the gang. The highly organised criminals designed police websites that appeared genuine to carry out their ruse. Once they had their hands on the funds, the money was laundered through a complex financial network. Ikenwe bragged in one message after one such transaction: 'Money doesn't grow on trees, but it grows on vics [victims].' He 'shared the spoils' with his cousin Nwamma so they could enjoy a lavish lifestyle and because they 'couldn't be bothered to work', Southwark Crown Court heard. Met Police detectives found the trio living extravagant lifestyles with the funds they had stolen, buying high-end clothes, cars and watches, as well as going on several luxury holidays - despite one of the men recording an income of £444 a year. On Thursday, the gang were sentenced to hefty prison terms at Southwark Crown Court for their crimes, having previously pleaded guilty. Crypto fraudster Hamza Bashir was one of three men enjoying a playboy lifestyle after stealing more than £4million from eight victims The gang showed off their spoils, including copious amounts of cash and designer clothes One of the men was seen showing off his Audemers Piguet designer Swiss watch Bashir was captured on police footage being arrested for his part in the brazen crypto gang Kevin Nwamma, seen at the point of arrest, was captured on video enjoying shopping sprees Footage released by the Met shows Ikenwe and Nwamma enjoying a shopping spree together. Another clip shows Ikenwe splashing his cash in a Hermès jewellery store. The group's spending also included a car worth almost £60,000 bought using crypto, around £500,000 in cash held in a safety deposit box in Dubai, and opulent holidays to Thailand, Japan, Paris, Mykonos, the Maldives and the Seychelles. Police found financial records which showed the stolen crypto was routinely converted into payment cards. The defendants blew hundreds of thousands of pounds during shopping trips to Harrods, Hermès and Louis Vuitton, and treated themselves to hotels, restaurants and other lifestyle expenses, despite having little or no verified income. Luxury goods recovered during police searches were valued at more than £26,000. Police identified transfers from wallets containing stolen crypto into bank accounts associated with Nwamma's luxury chauffeur and transport business. Officers also identified more than £1m in crypto linked to wallets controlled by Ikenwe.  Meanwhile Bashir was found in possession of tens of thousands of pounds of crypto and his mobile phone contained details of new potential targets, as well as videos of him rapping about the scam.    Their activities were uncovered after victims came forward in January 2025 to report the fraud.  Officers ploughed through blockchain transactions, emails and messages, financial records, cryptocurrency exchange records, and internet service provider data to uncover their crimes. Detectives identified common aliases, telephone numbers, websites, cryptocurrency wallets and spending patterns linking the men and revealing an organised criminal network. 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.' Hamza Bashir, 23, of Wimbledon, was sentenced to three years and nine months for conspiracy to commit fraud and three years for money laundering  Cousins Kevin Nwamma, 25 and Anthony Ikenwe, 29 were sentenced to six years for conspiracy to commit fraud and five years for money laundering. Ikenwe, 29, of East Tilbury, and Nwamma, 25, of Watford were sentenced to six years each for conspiracy to commit fraud and five years for money laundering. Hamza Bashir, 23, of Wimbledon, was sentenced to three years and nine months for conspiracy to commit fraud and three years for money laundering. All three will serve their sentences concurrently.  Judge Christopher Hehir said: 'I am sure all three of you shared profound contempt for your scam victims who you called 'vics'. 'Scamming people because you can't be bothered to work is a particularly low form of offending. 'But you three are the foolish ones. You three have thrown away your good name and liberty. 'This was sophisticated and well planned offending conducted over a series of months that took a complex police investigation to reveal. 'People have been financially ruined, or nearly ruined. The psychological effect of what was done to them, including the calculated fear you instilled in your victims, was very substantial.' One of the victims, Meghan Brown, said in a victim impact statement read in court: 'On the evening of January 15, 2025 my life was irrevocably changed. 'On that day I was already in a state of stress when I received a call from a person impersonating a law enforcement officer. 'They used aggression to instill fear and a sense of urgency before it was too late. 'I watched as two million dollars was drained from my account and stolen from me. My entire account was emptied. 'I was not careless. I did not share any information with any individuals.' She said that the call lasted for four and a half hours. 'I believe I will always remember that call as if it just occurred, it is that vivid in my memory. 'The financial consequences have been catastrophic and far reaching. 'It was not abstract wealth. It was the foundation of my life and the livelihood I had built.' Addressing the fraudsters she said: 'You heard my voice for four-and-a-half hours. You listened to my distress and kept going. 'You have shown zero remorse. You lived lavishly off people's hard earned money that you stole.' Saul Herman, prosecuting, said: 'There are eight victims. Each was the victim of a telephone phishing fraud, which caused losses of £4.8 million. 'The defendants impersonated police officers. They would tell the victims that a man had stolen their identities. 'The victims were then directed to a phishing website, and were subsequently stolen from.' One of the victims came back to the UK from a holiday in Spain to comply with the requests of the fraudsters. 'The defendants engaged with victims globally, targeting them regardless of their location,' the prosecutor said. Bashir produced rap videos bragging about his offending, which Judge Hehir said was evidence of 'greed and arrogance'. The judge also said the videos showed Bashir 'revelled in ill-gotten gains' and displayed a 'particularly distasteful contempt' for his victims. But Bashir was only linked to one £1m scam against Steven Lockwood, meaning his sentence was lower than Ikenwe and Nwamma who 'enjoyed the spoils' of eight victims between them. Referring to the victim impact statements Mr Herman said: 'In each statement they describe being traumatised by the fraud perpetrated against them. 'They each describe a heavy psychological impact from the offending.' Police officers gathered evidence after raiding seven addresses across London and Essex last November.  All three men were arrested, while numerous digital devices – including 40 mobile phones – were seized as well as luxury goods and cryptocurrency assets. Around £1million linked to the victims was recovered. The men were all charged the following day and have been remanded in custody ever since. Ikenwe and Nwamma pleaded guilty in April to conspiracy to defraud together with money laundering offences, including four counts of converting criminal property, between January and July 2025. Bashir initially denied involvement and stood trial, before changing his plea to guilty during the eighth day of proceedings after being presented with substantial evidence.