U.S. Justice Department Accuses 12 Individuals in $263 Million Cryptocurrency Heist Related to Genesis Creditor

The U.S. Department of Justice has charged twelve individuals with the theft of over $263 million in cryptocurrency. These individuals are associated with a previous investigation where scammers successfully diverted more than $243 million from a creditor of the trading platform Genesis.

Last year, one of the creditors connected to the now-defunct Genesis was targeted by fraudsters, resulting in the loss of $243 million in digital assets, which were subsequently funneled through various cryptocurrency mixers, according to blockchain investigator ZachXBT.

This week, several of those charged, including U.S. citizens and foreign nationals, were apprehended in California, as stated by the DOJ in a Thursday press release. The remaining two suspects are located outside of the United States.

The charges against these individuals encompass a range of offenses, including racketeering, wire fraud, money laundering, and obstruction of justice.

Fraudsters are increasingly employing social engineering tactics to acquire cryptocurrency. By gathering personal information, they manipulate users into transferring their digital assets.

On Thursday, Coinbase announced that some of its international employees were bribed, leading to the theft of sensitive user information from their database. As a result, the exchange anticipates compensating customers between $180 million and $400 million due to the data breach.

The U.S. Department of Justice has announced the indictment of an additional twelve individuals implicated in a racketeering scheme involving over $263 million in cryptocurrency fraud, money laundering, and home invasion crimes. These suspects are linked to a prior case where scammers extracted $243 million from a Genesis creditor. According to ZachXBT, a group of fraudsters was able to impersonate a Genesis creditor last year, stealing $243 million in digital assets which were later obscured using crypto mixers. Several of those charged, both U.S. citizens and foreign nationals, were arrested in California this week, while two others remain overseas. The rise of social engineering scams has become notable as criminals seek to steal cryptocurrency by deceiving users through personal information. Additionally, Coinbase reported that scammers had bribed some of their international staff, resulting in significant user data theft from their systems, and projected potential compensation costs for the breach.