Ilya Lichtenstein, the Bitfinex hacker and mastermind responsible for the 2016 theft of 120,000 Bitcoins, issued his initial public statement since his 2022 arrest.
Lichtenstein intends to pursue employment in the cybersecurity sector subsequent to his release. According to his attorney, the majority of the bitcoin that was taken has been recovered.
In a five-minute video that was posted on X, Lichtenstein admitted that he was the hacker and that he acted alone. He also denied the rumors in a Netflix documentary that his father or any agency may have been involved in the act.
During a remote visit with his wife from prison, Lichenstein also expressed his sincere contrition to Bitfinex for “all the anguish that he caused them.” In the video, Lichtenstein acknowledged that he was aware of the wrongfulness of his actions, yet he continued to carry them out. He expressed regret and self-hatred. Additionally, he provided an update on the progress of the efforts to return the misappropriated funds to Bitfinex.
Lichtenstein claimed that he has been diligently working for the past three years to return all of the misappropriated assets as part of his plea agreement and will continue to do so. A restitution hearing is scheduled for February to determine whether the recovered funds will be allocated to Bitfinex or its affected customers.
Heather Morgan, also known as “Razzlekhan,” the wife of the Bitfinex hacker, entered a plea of guilty. The charges included conspiracy to defraud the United States and money laundering. Lichtenstein requested Morgan’s assistance in laundering the Bitcoins, according to prosecutors, who discovered the Bitfinex breach years later.
Lichtenstein acknowledged in the video that his wife, Heather Morgan, is also a victim of his poor decisions. Morgan received an 18-month prison sentence for her assistance in Lichtenstein’s criminal activities last month. Morgan, who is most renowned for her humorous rap videos, has recently commenced the sale of custom videos on Cameo, a non-pornographic variant of Onlyfans, for $125 each. Her imprisonment could commence as early as the following month.
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