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Olympic sprinter CJ Ujah pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to defraud at Chelmsford Crown Court on Friday, one of ten defendants accused of running a scheme in which fraudsters posed as police officers to steal victims’ cryptocurrency, with one victim alleged to have lost more than £300,000.
Prosecutors allege the cryptocurrency fraud operation involved scammers posing as police officers and representatives of cryptocurrency companies, convincing victims to disclose sensitive security information before stealing digital assets from their crypto wallets.
One victim is alleged to have lost more than £300,000. Ujah and eight co-defendants pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to defraud, while another defendant is expected to enter a plea at a later hearing.
The case stems from an investigation led by the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit (ERSOU), which executed coordinated search warrants across Kent, Essex and London on 29 April.
According to the allegations presented before the court, members of the suspected organised crime group carried out phone scams in which fraudsters impersonated police officers and employees of cryptocurrency firms. Victims were allegedly persuaded to hand over confidential security credentials, allowing the suspects to access and empty cryptocurrency wallets.
Authorities claim the alleged cryptocurrency fraud targeted multiple victims, with financial losses running into hundreds of thousands of pounds. One victim is said to have lost more than £300,000.
Appearing in court under the name Chijindu Ujah, the 32-year-old athlete pleaded not guilty to conspiracy to defraud. Eight other defendants also entered not guilty pleas to the same charge.
Another defendant, Joseph Umoru, did not enter a plea and is expected to do so at a later hearing.
A 12-week trial has been scheduled to begin at Chelmsford Crown Court on 24 May next year, with the next procedural hearing listed for 9 September.
Ujah is among Britain’s most recognisable sprinters, having represented Great Britain at both the 2016 Rio Olympics and the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
He became only the fifth British athlete to run the 100 metres in under 10 seconds, recording a personal best of 9.96 seconds in 2014. Three years later, he helped Britain win 4x100m relay gold at the 2017 World Championships in London.
His career later came under scrutiny following the Tokyo Olympics, where he competed in the men’s 4x100m relay final. After testing positive for two prohibited substances, Britain’s relay team was stripped of its silver medal. However, Ujah was subsequently cleared of intentionally taking banned substances.
His latest court appearance is unrelated to his athletics career and centres solely on the alleged cryptocurrency fraud investigation.
The court heard that Ujah and the majority of the defendants deny the allegations against them.
Alongside Ujah, those charged include Brandon Mingeli, Louis Richards-Miller, Joseph Umoru, Adedeji Kujore, Taiwo Yusuf, Kehinde Yusuf, Jayden Nakayama, Samantha Gyabaa, and Jami Durston.
The court also heard that Brandon Mingeli denied a separate charge of converting criminal property. However, he pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of a false identity document.
The prosecution alleges the organised group orchestrated a sophisticated cryptocurrency fraud scheme by exploiting victims’ trust through impersonation tactics. Investigators say callers falsely claimed to represent law enforcement agencies or cryptocurrency businesses before persuading victims to reveal account credentials.
As the cryptocurrency fraud proceedings continue, the defendants remain subject to the criminal justice process, with guilt or innocence to be determined during the forthcoming trial.
The case highlights the growing focus of UK law enforcement on organised digital asset crime, particularly scams involving impersonation and unauthorised access to cryptocurrency wallets. Authorities have increasingly warned investors to verify unsolicited communications and avoid sharing wallet credentials or security information with unknown callers, as cryptocurrency fraud continues to evolve alongside wider cryptocurrency adoption.
The next hearing in the case is scheduled for 9 September, while the full trial is expected to commence in May next year.
Direct quotes from the proceedings: The source article contains no direct quotations from CJ Ujah, prosecutors, investigators, the judge, or other officials. To comply with your instruction not to add quotes that are not present in the original story, none have been inserted.
Primary source: The Independent
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