Wisconsin woman loses $80K trying to surprise husband with a crypto windfall — only to discover it was a scam #CriptoNews

It was supposed to be the ultimate wedding anniversary surprise, a secret investment that would unlock wealth the couple never knew.

Instead, a Wisconsin woman ended up more than $80,000 in the hole — the victim of a cruel crypto scam that lured her in with promises of sky-high returns and faked investment dashboards.

“She had a big smile on her face saying, ‘Look what I did,’” Scott Johansson told Fox 6 News Milwaukee about the moment his wife presented the gift, which turned out to be a bigger surprise than either of them wanted.

“All I thought was, ‘This is not real.’”

Unfortunately, he was right. Police doubt the money will ever come back, making the couple among a growing list of crypto victims in the U.S.

Johansson said his wife, who chose not to appear on camera with Fox 6 News, first discovered the investment on Facebook and was drawn in by the promise of quick, impressive returns.

She initially put in $30,000 and was told her money had nearly doubled within weeks. Encouraged by what seemed like a windfall, she ultimately invested a total of $55,000.

When she tried to cash out her $100,000 in supposed crypto earnings, she was told she needed to pay another $30,000 in taxes and fees. She paid it — bringing her total investment to $80,000, before finally realizing it was a scam.

Read more: This hedge fund legend warns US stock market will crash a stunning 80% — claims ‘Armageddon’ is coming. Don’t believe him? He earned 4,144% during COVID. Here’s 3 ways to protect yourself

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reports that Americans lost $5.7 billion to investment scams in 2024, a category that includes but is not limited to crypto scams. Losses specifically attributed to cryptocurrency as the payment method were reported to be $1.4 billion, which is likely an undercount since FTC figures rely on self-reported consumer data.

Crypto scams are getting more sophisticated, especially with so-called pig butchering schemes. Pig butchering is a sophisticated, long-term scam that combines elements of romance fraud, catfishing and investment schemes, most involving cryptocurrency. The term comes from the idea of “fattening up” the victim (the “pig”) with attention and trust before “slaughtering” them by stealing their money.