Canadian Gets 25 Months in Prison in $13M Bitcoin Support Scam
Trenton Johnston, 20, received 25 months in a U.S. prison in a fake-support crypto case involving 185 stolen BTC and luxury spending.
Key Notes
- CBC reports a 25-month US prison sentence for Trenton Johnston after his money-laundering conspiracy plea.
- A California victim lost 185 BTC worth about $13 million through fake support calls.
- Johnston surrendered stolen cryptocurrency and is expected to be deported to Canada after further US custody.
A 20-year-old Canadian has been sentenced to 25 months in a U.S. prison in a cryptocurrency case involving a California victim who lost 185 Bitcoin, worth about $13 million at the time.
Trenton Richard David Johnston received the sentence in federal court in Miami on October 26 after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering, CBC reported. He surrendered approximately $3.8 million in stolen cryptocurrency and has been in custody since his March arrest.
Fake Support Calls Led to Wallet Access
Investigators said Johnston impersonated Google technical-support staff and representatives of cryptocurrency businesses to persuade victims to disclose access codes. The approach exploited trust in familiar companies to obtain entry to digital accounts and wallets.
In the California theft, Johnston and an accomplice took 185 BTC in March, according to court documents described by Dexerto. The roughly $13 million figure is the reported value of those coins when stolen, rather than an additional cash loss on top of the Bitcoin.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Florida had announced charges in May, estimating losses across the scheme at more than $13 million. Its account described impersonators transferring victims’ holdings for their own benefit after gaining access.
Luxury Spending and a Rolls-Royce Arrest
Johnston was 19 when he was arrested while sitting in the back of a Rolls-Royce Cullinan in March, CBC reported. He is now 20.
Dexerto’s account of the court reporting lists a Lamborghini Aventador SVJ, two BMWs, jewelry, private-aircraft rental and spending on Miami nightlife. It also describes a witness telling investigators that Johnston had shared his screen on Discord to demonstrate his theft methods.
The earlier federal indictment named Brandon Michael Tardibone as a co-defendant and alleged that the pair used more than $1 million in proceeds on vehicles, jewelry and entertainment. Those charging allegations should be distinguished from Johnston’s later guilty plea and sentence.
Cooperation and the Cryptocurrency Surrender
Johnston initially faced wire-fraud and money-laundering conspiracy charges carrying statutory maximum penalties of up to 20 years. That maximum was potential exposure at the charging stage, rather than a sentence already imposed or a fixed prediction of the outcome.
Prosecutors subsequently described his help with investigations involving other individuals as substantial, according to the sentencing coverage. His defense lawyer said he admitted his involvement and expressed remorse.
The approximately $3.8 million handed over is separate from the larger loss estimate. Surrendering assets to authorities does not, by itself, establish that victims have received that amount or recovered all their losses. CBC says Johnston will serve more time in the United States before deportation to Canada.
Impersonation Remains a Wallet Risk
The case concerns deception used to obtain account access, rather than a demonstrated break in Bitcoin’s cryptography. CoinScreamer’s recent Keystone coverage examined a separate warning that exposed customer records could make fake support messages more convincing; no connection to Johnston’s case has been established.
Coinbase’s standing security guidance says support staff will not request passwords, two-factor authentication codes or recovery phrases, or instruct customers to send cryptocurrency to an external address. Users should reach support through the company’s independently verified official contact details.
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