The unauthorized transactions sent the stolen bitcoin to a digital wallet under Lichtenstein’s control. For the last five years, approximately 25,000 of those stolen bitcoins were transferred out of Lichtenstein’s wallet. He used a complicated money laundering process. And the stolen funds were being deposited back into financial accounts controlled by Lichtenstein and Morgan.
The remainder of the converted crypto, more than 94,000 bitcoins, remained in the wallet. And it was used to receive and store the illegal proceeds from the hack.
Uncovered files contained the private keys required to access the digital wallet that directly received the funds stolen from Bitfinex. And special agents recovered more than 94,000 bitcoins. The seized bitcoin was valued at over $3.6 billion at the time of the seizure.
Law Enforcement issue statements on Bitcoin Bandits
“Today’s arrests, and the department’s largest financial seizure ever, show that cryptocurrency is not a haven for criminals,” Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco tweeted. “In a futile effort to maintain digital anonymity, the defendants laundered stolen funds through a labyrinth of cryptocurrency transactions. 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.”
