A gang of cryptocurrency fraudsters based in Lancashire have been ordered to pay back ?24.5m to the victim of their theft.

The fraud began in 2017 when James Parker from Blackpool discovered a glitch in an Australian crypto currency trading website which allowed him to steal money.

His co-conspirators Stephen Boys, 56, Kelly Caton, 46, and Jordan Robinson, 26, siphoned off more than ?20m worth of credits over a three-month period before being jailed for money laundering two years ago.

The group has now been compelled to return the funds following a proceeds of crime hearing at Preston Crown Court, which revealed Lancashire Police had recovered assets of more than ?28m.

Ringleader Parker died in 2021 before he could be prosecuted for masterminding the conspiracy from his Blackpool home.

The court heard police had seized assets totalling ?4,029,293.13 from Robinson, ?7,928,308.59 from Caton, ?11,670,329.30 from Boys, around ?8,000,000 from Parker and ?1,100 from James Austin-Beddoes.

The total loss to the victim was ?24.5 million and they have since been compensated in full, police said.

Due to the increase in the value of Bitcoin purchased by the offenders, the amount seized outstripped the original fraud by around ?3m with the surplus being split between the Home Office, the courts and Lancashire Police.

The scam made so much money that ?5,000 in gift cards were handed out to people in the street and cars were bought for people Parker met in the pub, police said.

During the trial Boys told the court how he took ?1m cash in a suitcase to buy a villa from Russians he met in the back office of an estate agents, and paid ?60,000 to pay off corrupt officials so he could carry on laundering money.

During the investigation police recovered 445 Bitcoins - then worth ?22m - along with luxury watches, houses, cars and designer goods, including a ?600 wine cooler, along with more than ?1m in bank accounts.

Boys, from Accrington, was found guilty of converting and transferring criminal property and jailed for six years, while Caton, from Blackpool, and Robinson, from Fleetwood, both received sentences of four years six months in prison after being convicted of fraud, converting and acquiring criminal property.

Austin-Beddoes, 28, from St Annes, was found guilty of fraud and acquiring criminal property and pleaded guilty to converting criminal property earlier and was jailed for 18 months, suspended for a year.

Det Sgt Dave Wainwright said it was an "extremely challenging investigation".

"I am pleased that the victim has been compensated in full and that the defendants have been unable to benefit from their criminal activity," he said.

"The defendants have three months to comply with their court orders or face risking another 14-years imprisonment." (BBC)

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