The US Department of Justice has handed down hefty prison sentences to 12 people involved in a $3.5 million cryptocurrency heist.
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the sentencing of 12 people involved in violent home invasions intended to steal more than $3.5 million in cryptocurrency.
The sentences were imposed on the men for their involvement in robberies in various states. The leader of the group, Remy Ra St Felix, was sentenced to 47 years in prison, while his accomplice Seemungal received a 20-year sentence.
The DOJ reported that victims were held hostage at gunpoint in their homes and one person was abducted and found miles away.
In the incidents, it was reported that the criminals used the SIM swap method to obtain the victims' phone numbers. With this method, the criminals gained access to their cryptocurrency accounts, then raided the victims' homes and forcibly stole their cryptocurrencies.
According to the DOJ, during the raid, the victims were tied up with plastic handcuffs and forced to access their cryptocurrency accounts at gunpoint.
Cryptocurrency thieves tried every way
The funds were reportedly converted into anonymized cryptocurrencies and laundered using decentralized finance platforms in an effort to obscure the cryptocurrency’s traces. The DOJ stated that the victims were held hostage for hours, beaten, and threatened.
In incidents in states such as Florida and Texas, some victims were abducted from their homes at gunpoint and taken to other locations.
While most of the criminals were sentenced to long prison terms for the kidnapping conspiracy, one of the key conspirators, Seemungal, was ordered to pay approximately $4 million in compensation in addition to his 20-year sentence. It was emphasized that Seemungal was an important part of the robbery plan by hacking the victims’ cryptocurrency accounts.
The US Department of Justice said it will continue to crack down on such violent cryptocurrency heists.
Stay tuned for new information.
