Crypto sleuth admits he stole from his own platform in Velodrom heist

New York, New York - A renowned cryptocurrency investigator and supporter owned up to taking a whopping sum from his own team's crypto trading platform, all to make up personal losses he suffered during crypto winter.

Gabagool planned to return the stolen funds...after making back his losses.
Gabagool planned to return the stolen funds...after making back his losses.  © Unsplash/Quantitatives

The crypto trading platform Velodrome reported over the weekend via Twitter that it has figured out who was behind the theft of $400,000 in funds taken from a crypto wallet that was used by the company's team. And it's one of their own.

The former team member known as Gabagool, who is known in the crypto scene for his sleuthing skills, was behind what was originally reported as a hack. But the drained funds were traced back to Gabagool by a group of Veladrome members who didn't have access to the wallet.

Velodrome tweeted on Saturday: "Immediately following the attack, team members who did not have access to the team wallet began an independent investigation, which quickly resulted in the attacker's identification and the funds' return to team control.

BuzzFeed makes new and Complex cost-cutting moves
Finance BuzzFeed makes new and Complex cost-cutting moves

"Much to our disappointment, we learned the attacker was a fellow team member, Gabagool."

Gabagool himself also admitted to the crime on his personal Twitter.

Velodrome hacker says he planned to return the funds

In an illegal and risky finance ploy, Gabagool said he planned to return the funds before anyone noticed his sticky fingers, after first taking $56,000 and then $350,000 to make back his money lost to the crypto market's downturn over the past few months.

But he never made back his losses. In his confession on Twitter, he wrote that "the majority of the funds have been returned to the Velodrome team. The rest will be."

Velodrome confirmed that no users' funds were impacted, that the stolen sum was returned in full, and that they have cut ties with Gagabool.

Blockchain platforms and projects are still very easy to take advantage of. And even though most attacks come from outside actors, this latest case proves that sometimes the heists are inside jobs.

Cover photo: Unsplash/Quantitatives

More on Finance: