A hacker has been sentenced to five years in US federal prison for laundering the proceeds of one of the largest cryptocurrency thefts in history.
Ilya Lichtenstein pleaded guilty last year for his role in the 2016 hack of the Bitfinex cryptocurrency exchange, which resulted in the theft of nearly 120,000 bitcoin.
Lichtenstein laundered the stolen bitcoin with the assistance of his wife, Heather Morgan, who used the alias “Razzlekhan” to promote her hip-hop music.
At the time of the theft, the bitcoin was valued at around $70 million (£55.3 million), but by the time the couple was arrested, its worth had skyrocketed to over $4.5 billion. At current market prices, the stolen funds would be worth more than double that amount.
The $3.6 billion in assets recovered during the investigation marked the largest financial seizure in the history of the US Department of Justice (DOJ), according to Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco.
“It’s crucial to send the message that there are serious consequences for committing these crimes, and that they will not go unpunished,” said District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly during sentencing.
Lichtenstein, who has been incarcerated since his arrest in February 2022, expressed regret for his actions and stated that he hoped to use his skills to combat cybercrime after serving his sentence.
Morgan, who also pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering, is set to be sentenced on November 18.
Court documents revealed that Lichtenstein used advanced hacking techniques to breach Bitfinex. After the hack, he enlisted Morgan to help launder the stolen funds through a variety of complex methods, including creating fake identities, converting the funds into different cryptocurrencies, and purchasing gold coins.
Lichtenstein, originally from Russia but raised in the US, would reportedly meet couriers during family trips to move the laundered money back to the US.
Morgan’s alter-ego, Razzlekhan, gained attention on social media when the case was uncovered. Despite their efforts to conceal the hack, she continued to release profane rap videos filmed in various New York locations, calling herself a “bad-ass money maker” and “the crocodile of Wall Street.”
In articles for Forbes, Morgan also portrayed herself as a successful tech entrepreneur, branding herself as an “economist, serial entrepreneur, software investor, and rapper.”
