The U.S. Department of Justice has managed to crack one of the largest cryptocurrency robberies worth $ 3.6 billion in bitcoin linked to hacking in 2016 involving cryptocurrency exchange giant Bitfinex at the time.
The Justice Department has arrested a couple accused of being involved in money laundering. Ilya “Dutch” Lichtenstein, 34, and his wife, Heather Morgan, 31, a New York resident, were arrested in Manhattan on Tuesday morning. The couple had spent their illegally acquired wealth by buying various luxury items, gold and cryptocurrencies.
With this arrest, it brings an indication that the use of crypto in money laundering is not immune. The couple has faced heavy charges, including conspiracy to commit money laundering and forgery. The case was filed in federal court in Washington, D.C.
The two are accused of abetting the theft of 119,754 bitcoins stolen after a hacker hacked Bitfinex and initiated more than 2,000 transactions without permission. The total value of BTC at the time was $ 71 million. Today the value of BTC is said to reach $ 4.5 billion.
Justice Department detectives were able to trace the first traces of their appearance in the digital ‘underground’ market in 2017. Part of the money was transferred to AlphaBay, eBay’s version of the ‘dark web’.
Bitfinex said in a statement that it is working with the Justice Department on the possibility of returning stolen bitcoin.
