The National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET) is the name of the new department that will be in charge of investigating crimes carried out with crypto assets in the United States.
“The NCET will serve as a focal point for the department’s efforts to address the growth in crime involving these technologies,” said Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite Jr. of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
Among the functions that this team will have, will be to identify, investigate, support and prosecute the cases of the department that involve the criminal use of digital assets. However, they will have a special focus on crypto exchanges, mixers, and anything that “enables the misuse of cryptocurrencies and related services.”
The reason for creating this new office is because, from the Department of Justice, they assure The illicit use of cryptocurrencies has increased by criminals.
Polite Jr. explained that cryptocurrencies are “used to power” cyberattacks, extortion schemes, and ransomware; drug trafficking, hacking tools and illicit online smuggling; commit theft and fraud; and launder the proceeds of their crimes.
Eun Young Choi who was appointed as the director of NCET, indicated that the group will move forward and will expand its efforts as technology that surrounds digital assets, does too.
The NCET will have in its tasks to train local and international law enforcement. The intention is to develop the capacity to investigate and prosecute serious crimes involving cryptocurrencies and digital assets.
Bitfinex case and the 120,000 bitcoins
Although not commented on during the presentation of the new department, the launch of the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team comes just days after US authorities made the largest bitcoin seizure in its history.
More than USD 3.6 billion in bitcoins allegedly stolen as part of the Bitfinex exchange hack in 2016, were recovered by investigators.
Ilya Lichtenstein and his wife, Heather Morgan, are Suspects for trying to launder some 119,754 BTC stolen from Bitfinex after a hacker breached the platform and initiated more than 2,000 unauthorized transactions more than 5 years ago, as CriptoNoticias reported.
Currently, Lichtenstein remains in pretrial detention as a flight risk and Morgan was released on $3 million bail while awaiting trial.