TechFlow news, November 8 — According to Decrypt, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Friday the launch of a dedicated website to collect statements from users affected by the 2016 Bitfinex exchange hack. While the DOJ maintains that there are no victims in this case under the Crime Victims' Rights Act (CVRA), it still wants to ensure that anyone potentially impacted by the criminal actions of Ilya Lichtenstein and his wife Heather Morgan has an opportunity to speak.
In August 2016, Lichtenstein hacked the Bitfinex exchange and stole approximately 120,000 bitcoins (BTC) and bitcoin cash (BCH). At the time, these assets were valued at around $72 million; today, the BTC portion alone is worth roughly $9.2 billion.
On August 3, 2023, Lichtenstein pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. The DOJ has recommended a sentence exceeding five years, with sentencing scheduled for November 14, 2024. Morgan pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering and one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, and will be sentenced on November 15.
