A crypto investigator, ZachXBT, has accused a former professional Fortnite player, known as Serpent, of being involved in a massive memecoin scam. The alleged scam involved stealing a whopping $3.5 million.
From Fortnite Pro to Crypto Crook?
ZachXBT’s investigation linked Serpent to nine different crypto hacks. The evidence points to Serpent’s wallets receiving funds stolen from various memecoin scams, many of which involved hijacked social media accounts.
These hacks included taking over the Instagram accounts of McDonald’s and the Kabosu Shiba Inu meme’s owner, as well as several prominent X (formerly Twitter) accounts including those of Usher and Wiz Khalifa. These takeovers were used to promote fraudulent memecoins launched on the Solana-based platform, Pump.fun.
One example was the fake McDonald’s GRIMACE token, which briefly reached a $25 million market cap before the rug pull (when the creators disappear with the money). Around $700,000 from this scam alone ended up in wallets linked to Serpent.
The investigator traced the stolen funds through multiple transactions, ultimately ending up at a casino deposit address.
More Than Just Memecoins
ZachXBT also uncovered that Serpent launched his own project, ERROR, which also rug-pulled. Furthermore, Serpent allegedly gambled significant portions of the stolen funds, with screenshots showing over $300,000 wagered in a single day. He frequents online casinos like Roobet, Stake, BC Game, and Shuffle.
Serpent’s past isn’t squeaky clean either. He was reportedly fired from the esports organization Overtime in 2020 for cheating and was involved in another rug-pulled NFT project, DAPE, in 2022. Since the accusations surfaced, Serpent has deleted his X account posts and changed his profile.
The Bigger Picture: Memecoins and Solana
This whole situation highlights issues within the memecoin space and the Solana ecosystem. Pump.fun, the platform used to launch many of these scam coins, faced criticism for allowing its live-streaming feature to be exploited for promoting these fraudulent tokens using harmful tactics. This led to a temporary shutdown of their live-streaming.
Even prominent figures in the crypto world, like Changpeng Zhao (CZ), have expressed concerns about the memecoin craze, suggesting a need to focus on more substantial blockchain projects. Despite this, memecoins remain incredibly popular, with new ones frequently gaining traction.
