The US Department of Justice must have officially confirmed the seizure of such bitcoins and also the arrest of two people linked towards the 2016 Bitfinex hack, less than a week after they were noticed in a suspect transfer. Bitcoins worth an estimated $3.6 billion have been seized by the DOJ and will be returned to Bitfinex, which will work with Bitfinex to compensate victims of the hack in 2016.
Cryptocurrency related to 2016 Bitfinex hack
For the first time in history, the US Department of Justice announced nowadays that law enforcement had seized nearly US$3.6 billion in cryptocurrency, the largest-ever seizure.
Heather Morgan and Ilya Lichtenstein were the two people who were arrested for the seizure of more than 94,000 bitcoins (BTC) (age 31). It was only a little more than a week ago that an unknown wallet received these bitcoins.
For there own alleged involvement in Bitfinex’s massive 2016 hack and their plan to launder stolen digital currency, the couple has been arrested at their Manhattan home today.
At the time of the 2016 hack, 119,756 BTC had been stolen. At the time of both the hack, that quantity of BTC was worth $76 million, but as of this writing, it’s worth more than $5 billion.
Internal Revenue Service (IRS) investigators seized the BTC after executing court-authorized search warrants. “Online accounts controlled by Lichtenstein and Morgan” were subject to search under the terms of the warrants.
The DOJ’s “largest financial seizure ever,” according to Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco, was the result of the arrest.
A sentence of up to 20 years in prison and a five-year prison sentence are possible for Lichtenstein and Morgan if convicted on the charges of conspiracy to launder money and hidden agenda to defraud the United States. Until their trial and sentencing, the couple is in custody.
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A statement released by Bitfinex claims the exchange will “work with the DOJ and applies proper legal processes to demonstrate our privileges to a return of the accused of stealing bitcoins.” Let me know your thoughts in the comment section below.
