Key facts:
Heather Morgan, Lichtenstein’s wife and accomplice, posted $3 million bail.
Morgan and Lichtenstein are accused of stealing nearly 120,000 bitcoins from Bitfinex.
Ilya Lichtenstein, one of those accused of laundering money from the multi-billion dollar hack of bitcoin (BTC) exchange Bitfinex in 2016, will remain in custody as the investigation into the case continues.
Judge Beryl A. Howell of the District of Columbia, United States, made the decision because she believes that Lichtenstein has reason to flee. In addition, he considers himself an “expert” in financial tricks that will potentially allow him to live a future outside the United States.
Likewise, the court sees that the alleged hacker has the possibility of moving around with false identifications and trade financial assets discreetly, reported the New York Times.
While Heather Morgan, the wife and accomplice of the detainee who was also in police custody, did manage to get out with $3 million bail, putting his parents’ house as collateral. Authorities believe he met the criteria for supervised release.
The couple is accused of conspiracy to launder money and conspiracy to defraud the United States, according to the complaint of the Department of Justice.
They fell into the hands of justice after they tried to move 119,754 BTC
Lichtenstein and Morgan were caught trying to launder some 119,754 bitcoins stolen from Bitfinex, after a hacker breached the platform and initiated more than 2,000 unauthorized transactions more than 5 years ago.
The cryptocurrencies were sent to a digital wallet controlled by Lichtenstein, a fact reported by CriptoNoticias.
Of the 119,754 BTC were transferred 25,000 BTC over the last five years. The special agents, during the investigation, obtained access to a file containing the private keys required to access the digital wallet where the stolen Bitfinex funds were located.
The remaining 94,000 BTC They were confiscated by the authorities. So far, this is considered the largest seizure of funds in the history of the Department of Justice.