Federal prosecutors have formally charged two suspected crypto fraudsters, Malone Lam, 20, and Jeandiel Serrano, 21, with the theft of over $230 million worth of cryptocurrencies first disclosed by blockchain sleuth ZachXBT.
The two were arrested last night in their respective homes in Miami and Los Angeles, as ZachXBT alleged Thursday morning in a long thread detailing insider conversations planning the hack and efforts to conceal the allegedly stolen funds.
Lam, also known as “Anne Hathaway” and “$$$,” and Serrano, who uses “VersaceGod” and “@SkidStar,” were charged with conspiracy to steal and launder funds. Veer Chetal, aka "Wiz," was named by ZachXBT but was not a named party in the FBI's investigation.
The FBI alleges the perpetrators used the funds — thought to have been stolen from an early bitcoin investor and creditor of defunct lending firm Genesis — “ on international travel, nightclubs, luxury automobiles, watches, jewelry, designer handbags, and rental homes.”
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ZachXBT first noticed the possible theft of 4,100 bitcoins in August, and then began working with authorities and security firms Cryptoforensic Investigators and zeroShadow to trace the funds, the pseudonymous research said on X.
He described the financial forensic investigation as “one of my best … of all time.”
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, the FBI’s Washington Field Office and the IRS-Criminal Investigation Washington Field Office are now pursuing an “ongoing investigation,” which could involve others.
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