Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan, who are accused of laundering billions of Bitcoins stolen in the 2016 Bitfinex hack, have reached a plea deal with federal prosecutors
Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan, accused of laundering billions of stolen Bitcoin from the Bitfinex exchange in 2016, managed to reach a plea deal with federal prosecutors.
The couple, originally charged in early 2022, are scheduled to appear for a plea hearing and arraignment on August 3.
Parties must provide plea documents detailing various aspects of their charges and potential penalties by July 27.
The controversial couple were involved in the laundering of 119,754 Bitcoins, now valued at over $4.5 billion, which were stolen during the Bitfinex hack in 2016, which had a significant impact on Bitcoin’s value.
Morgan, a multi-talented person who identifies as a rapper, economist and CEO, among other roles, and Lichtenstein allegedly moved the funds through a darknet exchange associated with various crimes.
They also reportedly provided false information to virtual currency exchanges and other financial institutions about the source of their funds and the nature of their transactions, in an effort to evade anti-money laundering and know-your-customer regulations, and prevent the submission of suspicious activity reports.
Earlier this year, Morgan, while under house arrest, got a job at a classified tech company as a growth marketer and business development specialist. Although she was charged with conspiracy to launder money and defraud the United States, a federal judge granted her request to work three days a week in the company’s New York office, a move that federal prosecutors did not object to.
