NYC Couple Tried To Launder $4.5B Worth Of Stolen Bitcoin: Feds

New York City NY

09 February, 2022

3:43 PM

Description

NEW YORK CITY — A digital trail from a massive cryptocurrency hack that pilfered $4.5 billion worth of Bitcoin led to a New York City couple, federal authorities said. Justice officials arrested Ilya Lichtenstein, 34, and Heather Morgan, 31, this week on accusations they tried to launder the stolen loot, prosecutors said. Feds seized $3.6 billion of Bitcoin — or BTC — from accounts linked to Lichtenstein and Morgan, who investigators linked to a massive 2016 hack of a popular online cryptocurrency exchange, according to court documents. "Due to the increase in the value of BTC since the breach, the stolen funds are valued at over $4.5 billion as of February," documents state. Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco called largest financial seizure in the Justice Department's history. "In a futile effort to maintain digital anonymity, the defendants laundered stolen funds through a labyrinth of cryptocurrency transactions," she said in a statement. "Thanks to the meticulous work of law enforcement, the department once again showed how it can and will follow the money, no matter what form it takes." Court documents detail the dizzying digital trail that investigators followed after Bitfinex, a virtual currency exchange, was hacked in 2016. A hacker emptied virtual wallets on the exchange through 2,000 unauthorized transactions and made off with 119,754 Bitcoin, documents state. Investigators traced the funds to accounts in Lichtenstein's and Morgan's names, as well as their businesses, according to documents. "Law enforcement was also able to determine that numerous accounts set up with fictitious personas and involved in the laundering were, in fact, controlled by Lichtenstein and Morgan," the documents state. Lichtenstein and Morgan were arraigned Wednesday on charges of conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to defraud the United States. Lichtenstein and Morgan - statement of facts by Matt Troutman on Scribd