First-Ever Bitcoin RICO Case Hits Federal Court After Alleged $230M Crypto Heist

Malone Lam is scheduled to appear in a Washington, D.C. federal court for a plea agreement hearing regarding the alleged theft of more than 4,100 Bitcoin. The primary theft occurred around August 18, 2024, when the attackers impersonated Google and Gemini to trick the victim into granting remote access to their digital assets. Federal prosecutors charged Lam and 17 co-defendants under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, marking the very first application of this law to a Bitcoin-related criminal enterprise. While law enforcement froze or recovered approximately $70 million, roughly $193 million remains completely unaccounted for across the group's total $263 million in alleged thefts. Nine of Lam's co-defendants have already pleaded guilty, receiving federal prison sentences ranging from 70 to 78 months as the judicial system treats crypto theft with traditional financial severity.