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Illicit Virtual Asset Use On The Rise, U.S. Treasury Report Reveals
7.2.2024
The U.S. Treasury Department is seeing an increase in illicit crypto use according to a Thursday report. The department’s 2024 National Risk Assessments on Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing, and Proliferation Financing report highlights that virtual assets are increasingly used by illicit...
Indian National Pleads Guilty in Case Involving ‘Largest Single Cryptocurrency and Cash Seizure in DEA History’
30.1.2024
An Indian national has pleaded guilty in a case involving “the largest single cryptocurrency and cash seizure” in the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) history. The defendant “is designated as a Consolidated Priority Target, which makes him one of the most significant...
US Government to Sell $116 Million in Bitcoin Seized From Darknet Dealer ‘Xanaxman’
26.1.2024
The forfeiture division of the U.S. government has announced its plan to sell 2,933.64 bitcoin. These were confiscated from Ryan Farace, who faced charges in 2021 for laundering proceeds from drug trafficking. Farace, also known by his alias Xanaxman, disclosed in his plea agreement that...
Jamie Dimon Insists Bitcoin Doesn’t Have Value as JPMorgan Teams up With Blackrock on Spot Bitcoin ETF
11.1.2024
JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon has insisted that bitcoin doesn’t have value, emphasizing that its use cases are sex trafficking, tax avoidance, money laundering, and terrorism financing. However, JPMorgan has teamed up with Blackrock to help the world’s largest asset manager grow...
Attorney Says They Are “Receiving 5-6 Emails a Day” From Victims of Pig Butchering Scams
1.1.2024
Source: AdobeStock / James Thew Pig butchering scams, a rapidly growing criminal activity involving online romance, fake crypto investments, and human trafficking, have been plaguing US citizens, resulting in significant financial losses. In a recnet interview, Erin West, Deputy District Attorney...
Senator Warren’s Bipartisan Push to Combat Crypto Money Laundering Gains Momentum
12.12.2023
Source: Screenshot of video Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s YouTube page Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) has announced an increase in support for the bipartisan Digital Asset Anti-Money Laundering Act, which aims to tackle concerns around the use of crypto in illegal activities such as money laundering...
South Korean Police Arrest 48 in ‘Crypto-powered Drug Trafficking’ Raids
30.11.2023
Source: Angelov/Adobe Police in the South Korean city of Daegu say they have raided a “drug trafficking organization” that used crypto as a payment tool – and arrested 48 people. Per Chosun Ilbo, the Daegu Police Agency’s metropolitan investigation unit arrested 44 people connected to a suspected...
Tether Freezes $225 Million in USDT After DOJ Investigation, Calling It ‘Largest-Ever Freeze of USDT’
21.11.2023
Tether has announced the “largest-ever freeze of USDT in history.” In collaboration with crypto exchange Okx, Tether froze $225 million in USDT following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The tokens were allegedly linked to an international human trafficking...
Tether Freezes $225M Linked to Human Trafficking Syndicate Amid DOJ Investigation
20.11.2023
Stablecoin issuer Tether has frozen $225 million worth of its stablecoin following an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) into an international human trafficking syndicate in Southeast Asia
Prisoners’ Dreams to Stash $54M in Crypto in Exotic Locales Dashed as Feds Grab Them for Treasury
2.11.2023
Federal law enforcement has seized $54 million worth of cryptocurrencies from the leader of a notorious New Jersey drug ring, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said Thursday in a statement
UK Lawmakers Roll Out Legislation to Seize Cryptocurrencies Used for Illegal Purposes
26.10.2023
The UK Parliament has passed a bill that allows law enforcement authorities to seize cryptocurrencies associated with illicit activities. This includes investment scams, hacks, terrorism financing, money laundering, and drug trafficking. Per an official announcement on its website, the new bill...
FBI Charges Six in Connection with $30M Crypto Crime Ring
20.10.2023
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) filed charges on Wednesday against six individuals for allegedly running an unlicensed money-transmitting business involving $30 million in cryptocurrencies.
The information came to light through court documents filed in the Southern District of New York....
South Australian Police Seizes $1.5M in Crypto From Man Charged With Drug Trafficking
5.10.2023
South Australian police have apprehended a 25-year-old man from Adelaide Hills on charges of drug trafficking and money laundering, with approximately $1.5 million worth of crypto seized during the operation.
The accused individual operated multiple vendor profiles on the dark web, selling various...
OFAC Blacklists ETH Wallet Operated By Cartel for Illicit Drug Trafficking
26.9.2023
In a new round of sanctions, the US Department of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has added ten more individuals to its blackbook.
According to a September 26 press release, the US government agency disclosed that many of these individuals were affiliated with an international...
US Treasury sanctions Ethereum wallet tied to cartel over 'illicit fentanyl trafficking'
26.9.2023
An ETH wallet tied to Mexican national Mario Alberto Jimenez Castro was allegedly used for illicit fentanyl sales in the United States
Romanian Prosecutors Pursue Confiscation of $563K Bitcoin Stash Owned by Andrew Tate
20.6.2023
Romanian prosecutors have officially submitted documents to the court, seeking the seizure of 21 bitcoin valued at $563,000 from Andrew Tate, a controversial social media influencer. The British-American ex-kickboxer, who gained a significant online presence, was charged with grave offenses...
Philippines Law Enforcement Busts Crypto Scam Center, Over 1,000 Human Trafficking Victims Rescued
10.5.2023
Over 1,000 human trafficking victims were recently rescued from a “fraud factory” in Mabalacat, a town located nearly 90 kilometers northwest of Manila, Philippines law enforcement has said. Michelle Sabino from the Philippine National Police Anti-Cybercrime Group said trafficking...
S Korean President Calls for ‘War’ on Crypto-powered Drug Trafficking
19.4.2023
South Korean President Yoon Seok-yeol has declared an “all-out war” on crypto-powered drug trafficking after a large number of narcotics-trading teens were handed jail time.
Per Today Korea, Yoon said there was a “need” to “mobilize all government capabilities in the fight against drugs.”
At...
Philippine Authorities Rescue Alleged Victims of ‘Crypto Trafficking Ring’
23.1.2023
Philippine authorities say that they have rescued alleged victims of a “crypto trafficking ring” who were recruited to work in a call center in Cambodia and scam people out of their cryptocurrencies. The authorities are also investigating government employees who may have assisted...
Report: FTX Co-Founder SBF Retains White-Collar Lawyer Who Represented Ghislaine Maxwell
7.12.2022
On Dec. 6, 2022, the former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) reportedly retained the attorney Mark Cohen, the lawyer that represented Ghislaine Maxwell during her recent sex trafficking case. SBF’s spokesperson further explained that the FTX co-founder is being consulted by a professor at Stanford...