- Bitfinex hacker sentenced, stolen Bitcoin now valued over $10.5 billion as crypto market surges.
- Lichtenstein’s cooperation cuts sentence, helping investigations into major cybercrime cases.
- Morgan to face sentencing for aiding laundering of stolen Bitcoin using advanced methods.
A Federal Court in Washington has recently convicted Ilya Lichtenstein a major player in the Bitfinex hack of 2016. The verdict was read on November 14, a day after the prosecutors demanded a severe consequence for his part in one of the most significant crypto heists of all time. His wife Heather “Razzlekhan” Morgan a social media rapper is expected to be given an 18 months imprisonment as suggested by the prosecutors.
According to a recent report, Lichtenstein, who has been charged with up to 20 years in prison, had his sentence lessened because of cooperation with the authorities. He performed as a cooperating government witness and shared useful information in several cybercrimes cases. The one that stands out is the Bitcoin Fog, a cryptocurrency tumbler related to money laundering operations.
Bitfinex Heist’s Massive Impact
In the Bitfinex hack, Lichtenstein and Morgan were able to get away with 119,754 Bitcoin worth $71 million at the time of the theft. The current price of Bitcoin which recently traded at $88,158 and even spiked at $93,000 has raised the worth of the stolen Bitcoin to over $10.5 billion. This staggering growth has however compound the already notorious crime even more.
As a “highly skilled computer expert,” Lichtenstein planned for the theft of over 2,000 transactions to transfer the stolen Bitcoin into his wallet. He also affected other leading digital currencies exchanges including Bitfinex, Coinbase, and Kraken and this shows the extent of his cyber criminal activities.
Morgan’s Role in Laundering
Morgan said that she learned of her husband’s part in the Bitfinex hack in 2020. When she came to know about the theft she assisted him in money laundering of the stolen funds in the best way she could. These were buying Non-fungible tokens, Gold and Walmart gift cards. The couple also used unregulated crypto exchanges and darknet marketplaces to hide the sources of the money, prosecutors pointed out.
Morgan is due to be sentenced on the 18th of November this year. Even though she could be sentenced to up to five years in prison for conspiracy to defraud the United States, her information to the investigators may reduce her time in prison as it happened to her husband.
The couple, who showed how to split transactions and create false identities to wash money, indicate the trend towards the Web and other forms of advanced cybercrime in the cryptocurrency world. Since the value of Bitcoin has been on the rise, this theft has become even worse. The case therefore calls for improvement of security measures and regulatory requirements that are important in the growth of the cryptocurrency market.
