A Simi Valley man facing fraud charges is accused of stealing $97,000 from an 89-year-old's cryptocurrency account, according to authorities.
In November, the Ventura County Sheriff's Office received a report of a theft from an older adult, according to a news release from the sheriff's office. An investigation found a 26-year-old man, introduced through a mutual contact at a local senior gathering, befriending the 89-year-old man.
The young Simi man allegedly helped the 89-year-old with his phone, including resetting the password for a Coinbase cryptocurrency exchange account, the release says.
The Simi man maintained contact with the 89-year-old between June 2024 to September 2025 until the elderly man discovered he was missing a substantial
amount of money, officials said.
Money had been transferred as cryptocurrency from the 89-year-old's Coinbase account, which was set up to debit directly from a bank account, officials said.
The sheriff's office, in collaboration with the FBI, and other authorities gathered financial records and found that more than $97,000 was allegedly stolen in more than 80 separate transactions that were depositing into the Simi man's accounts and cryptocurrency wallets, the release says.
On August 4, the Simi man was arrested on suspected financial elder abuse, grand theft and identity theft, officials said.
The Simi man was released on bail the same days as the arrest and has a Ventura County Superior Court hearing scheduled for Aug. 18, jail records show.
The sheriff's office says it's possible there are more victims and asks anyone with information contact Sr. Deputy Andrew Van Gundy at 805-494-8231.
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This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Simi Valley man accused of stealing $97k in crypto from elderly man
