The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia announced on Thursday that two individuals have been charged “with conspiracy to steal and launder over $230 million in cryptocurrency from a victim in Washington, D.C.” Malone Lam, 20, of Miami, and Jeandiel Serrano, 21, of Los Angeles, were arrested and face charges related to the large-scale cryptocurrency fraud.
According to the indictment:
The conspirators would fraudulently gain access to victim cryptocurrency accounts and then transfer victim funds into their possession.
“They laundered the proceeds, including by moving the funds through various mixers and exchanges using ‘peel chains,’ pass-through wallets, and virtual private networks (VPNs) to mask their true identities,” the Attorney’s Office detailed.
The stolen cryptocurrency was used to finance a lavish lifestyle, the authorities noted, stating:
Lam and Serrano then allegedly spent the laundered cryptocurrency proceeds on international travel, nightclubs, luxury automobiles, watches, jewelry, designer handbags, and rental homes in Los Angeles and Miami.
In one instance, Lam, Serrano, and their conspirators contacted a victim in Washington, D.C., and fraudulently obtained more than 4,100 bitcoins, valued at over $230 million at the time. As of this writing, bitcoin is trading at $62,855, raising the value of the fraudulently obtained Bitcoin to approximately $258 million.
