British sprinter CJ Ujah, a world 4x100m relay gold medallist, has been charged with conspiracy to defraud as part of a police investigation into cryptocurrency fraud. He is one of ten suspects allegedly linked to an organised crime group that tricked victims into sharing security details, leading to stolen funds from crypto wallets.
Police said the scam involved phone calls from people posing as police officers and cryptocurrency companies. Victims were persuaded to disclose seed phrases and other sensitive information, with one victim reportedly losing more than £300,000. The arrests followed an investigation by the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit across Kent, Essex and London.
All ten suspects appeared at Margate Magistrates’ Court last Thursday. Ujah was among seven granted bail until the next hearing at Chelmsford Crown Court on 28 May. Fellow athlete Brandon Mingeli, who represented Great Britain at the 2021 European Under-23 Championships, was also charged and has been remanded in custody.
Ujah, 32, ran the first leg for Great Britain's 4x100m relay team at the 2017 world championships, winning gold in Usain Bolt's final race. He also won the Diamond League title that year and holds a personal best of 9.96 seconds for the 100m. In 2022, he received a 22-month ban after testing positive for prohibited substances at the Tokyo Olympics, though he was cleared of intentional doping after a contaminated supplement was identified.
