Sydney lawyer accused of alleged cryptocurrency scam

A Sydney lawyer has fronted court for the first time after being accused of being involved in a cryptocurrency scam that totalled $2.3 million.

A Sydney-based solicitor has fronted court after being accused of playing a role in a $2.3 million cryptocurrency scam.

The lawyer, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was granted bail when he appeared in Sydney’s Central Local Court on Thursday afternoon.

Police had opposed him being freed, arguing he represented a flight risk.

But magistrate Clare Farnan granted him bail, noting there had been no alleged offending for two years and that his passport had been handed in to detectives.

A Sydney lawyer has faced court over his alleged involvement in a cryptocurrency scam. Photo: Ozan KOSE/AFP.

The 38-year-old was arrested on Wednesday after a two-year NSW Police investigation into the alleged scheme.

He is alleged to have been involved in a scam in which four men, aged from 69 to 95, deposited $2.3 million into various bank accounts.

Police said the alleged victims had responded to an online advertisement and spoke with an unknown person about trading cryptocurrency.

It’s alleged the four men deposited the money over a four-month period from December 2018 to March 2019.

Police have alleged that the accounts were all linked to a Sydney-based solicitor, who was paid by an international criminal syndicate.

The man was charged at Sydney’s Day Street Police Station on Wednesday and has been charged with four counts of recklessly dealing with the proceeds of crime.