The recent blacklisting of an Ethereum address by Tether has raised suspicions of a potential link to a $22 million rug pull scam orchestrated by two California men, Gabriel Hay and Gavin Mayo. The blacklisted wallet holds 13.144 million USDT on Ethereum and 2.66 million ROOST tokens on Base, and it received 150 ETH from an entity known for removing ROOST/WETH liquidity on the Base blockchain. The connection between the blacklisting and the indictment against Hay and Mayo has been highlighted by blockchain sleuth ZachXBT, drawing attention to the possible involvement of Roost Coin, a token associated with the blacklisted address.
The indictment filed by the U.S. Department of Justice accuses Hay and Mayo of defrauding investors by promoting fraudulent NFT projects such as Vault of Gems, Faceless, and Roost Coin. The duo allegedly raised millions of dollars for these projects but failed to deliver on their promises, ultimately abandoning the projects. Hay and Mayo are also accused of falsely naming others as project leaders to conceal their involvement and launching harassment campaigns against individuals who exposed their role in the scams.
The blacklisted address’s connection to ROOST tokens and its involvement in removing liquidity on the Base blockchain further deepen suspicions surrounding Roost Coin’s association with the fraudulent activities. Tether’s decision to blacklist the wallet could be part of broader efforts to disrupt the financial networks of those implicated in the scam. Notably, this is not the first time Tether has blacklisted a wallet in connection with criminal activities, as they previously took action against addresses involved in the theft of USDT tokens from the FixedFloat exchange hack.
As the investigation into the $22 million rug pull scandal continues, the blockchain community remains vigilant in monitoring suspicious activities and addressing fraudulent practices within the digital asset space. The collaboration between blockchain security firms like PeckShield and independent researchers like ZachXBT plays a crucial role in identifying and exposing fraudulent schemes that threaten the integrity of the cryptocurrency market. By following the trail of blockchain transactions and exposing connections between addresses, the community can work together to hold bad actors accountable and protect investors from falling victim to scams.
