Is this work legal? Someone promises payment for converting money transfers to Bitcoin

Question

An online company hired my friend as an account assistant. They told him they are a business consulting firm, and that they need an account assistant in every area. His job is the following:

1. Some companies send money to my friend's account by inter-account e-transfer.

2. My friend needs to withdraw the money, go to a bitcoin ATM and send the money to our dealers, because they are a wholesale company and their dealers receive the money only in bitcoin.

My friend is thinking about it and wants to do the job. He wants my opinion. That's why I asked the question, because I don't want my friend to face any problems.

---

Update: My friend already made one transaction. He is afraid. What is his next step?

Answer 1

It's a scam. It's called a money mule. Typically the way this will work is that the scammers will make a fraudulent money transfer into your friend's account. Your friend will convert the funds into Bitcoin and send it off to the scammers. After a few days or weeks, the bank will figure out that the original transfer was fraudulent and come after your friend's bank account to be reimbursed. There's no way to reverse the Bitcoin transfer, so your friend will be held responsible for the missing money.

Answer 2

It’s a money-laundering scam, and your friend is likely to get into serious trouble, and possibly lose a lot of money, if he takes part.

Answer 3

Your friend should go to a lawyer. The lawyer can then make a deal with the government where your friend testifies as to the activities. Your friend may be asked to communicate with his "employer" to get them to do more illegal things. Or required to turn over his email, etc. to the authorities so that they can communicate with the "employer" and get them to give additional information.

If your friend cannot afford a lawyer, then the other alternative is to go to the police directly.

The big thing about this that screams scam is that the money is deposited into your friend's account. A real company would buy bitcoin from its own accounts. Processing through a third party account is either money laundering (your friend could go to jail) or a scam (your friend may lose the money withdrawn to bitcoin). Or both, your friend could be broke and in jail.

There is also a risk that they money is obtained illegally and the deposits into the account can be reversed.

Under no circumstances should your friend continue to participate without informing law enforcement.

Answer 4

This is definitely a scam

Most electronic fund transfers are reversible, whereas bitcoin transactions are final. Your friend will successfully receive the money and transfer it as bitcoin. When the original transfer is reversed for being fraudulent (or even worse proceeds from an illegal act) the money will be reclaimed from your friend's account. They will be out whatever amount was sent as bitcoin.

Even worse the money from the original transfer could be associated with illegal activity, and your friend is now into money laundering and could end up in jail! This scenario might actually result in friend making money, but the longer they do it the more they will seem to be part of it than a hapless victim.

This is not a job, it is a scam.

Answer 5

As other people already replied: it's a scam.

Now you ask: "what can he do?" He needs to alert the authorities, explain that he was unaware of the fraud, and ask the police what he can do to help stop it. The police may be able, with his help, to stop it and arrest the scammers. At a minimum, he can escape legal prosecution against himself.

Answer 6

The money is real but the source is not legitimate. Typically those are bank transfers from accounts with stolen credentials. If and when the owners of those accounts notify the police, the money will get returned and your brother's bank will demand covering the debt. There will also be criminal investigations with regard to money laundering against your brother.

It is also likely that the bank will cancel his account since your brother signed an agreement that he will use his account only to conduct business in his behalf rather than that of others (exactly because of money laundering laws) and he clearly has wittingly breached the conditions of his account.

He needs to come clean with both his bank and the police and ask for further instructions. If he is very, very lucky, that first transfer was a test balloon that actually won't blow up since its main purpose was to prime your brother for larger work. Then he might even get off reasonably unscathed if he acts now.

Answer 7

This is a scam. There is no bitcoin ATM. The company will take your friends money and run.