prosecution

According to a report by South Korea's News1, the Korean "drug lord" Park Wang-ryeol (phonetic) who was apprehended in the Philippines has been transferred to the Korean Drug Crime Joint Investigation Headquarters. Authorities will focus on tracing his hidden funds and Bitcoin transaction records, and will begin to arrest related accomplices.Park Wang-ryeol is accused of continuously smuggling and selling drugs within South Korea from November 2019 to July 2024, with confirmed criminal proceeds amounting to approximately 6.8 billion won. Additionally, drugs valued at around 6.4 billion won, including methamphetamine (12.7 kilograms), were seized during smuggling, bringing the total scale of the case to about 13.1 billion won.As outsiders believe that the aforementioned amounts do not match his long-term operational scale, the investigation will focus on his hidden assets. Park Wang-ryeol has received payments for drug sales through non-discounted deposits and Bitcoin wallets, and authorities plan to analyze the on-chain transaction records of the involved Bitcoin wallets.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Massachusetts recently filed a civil forfeiture lawsuit seeking to recover 327,829.720952 USDT (approximately $327,000), which is allegedly related to a cryptocurrency scam conducted through a dating app.Prosecutors stated that the investigation began in the fall of 2024 when authorities discovered that a Massachusetts resident was suspected of being involved in a "romance scam." The suspect, using the name "Linda Brown," claimed to have a cryptocurrency investment opportunity after establishing a relationship with the victim for several weeks, leading the victim to transfer funds. Prosecutors claimed that the suspect used "legitimate investment" as a guise to trick the victim into transferring funds to a wallet address controlled by the suspect or an accomplice. The victim only realized the investment was a scam after failing to withdraw funds.Law enforcement noted that the stolen funds were transferred through multiple cryptocurrency wallets, then converted to USDT, and ultimately used for money laundering transactions. At the time of this case, U.S. regulators are intensifying warnings about "romance-related cryptocurrency scams." Previously, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Ohio issued a reminder titled "Cupid Doesn't Ask for Crypto" ahead of Valentine's Day, warning the public to be cautious of romance investment scams conducted through social media and instant messaging platforms.

According to The Block, South Korean prosecutors have recovered approximately $21.4 million worth of Bitcoin (BTC) that was previously stolen from their custody last year.In December last year, South Korean prosecutors discovered that the Bitcoin seized during a raid on a gambling platform had gone missing. An internal investigation revealed that in August this year, investigators accidentally accessed a phishing website and entered their recovery mnemonic, leading to the Bitcoin being stolen by hackers.The hacker returned 320.8 BTC to a wallet controlled by South Korean law enforcement on Tuesday. Prosecutors stated that they had previously blocked the hacker's transactions on centralized exchanges, making it difficult for them to cash out the Bitcoin. The hacker's identity remains unknown. Prosecutors have transferred the returned Bitcoin to a local exchange for safekeeping and will continue to investigate the hacker's identity.

According to the official account of the Shenzhen People's Procuratorate, recently, the Shenzhen People's Procuratorate of Guangdong Province, after legal review, prosecuted defendants Sui Guangyi, Ma Xiaoqiu, and 30 others for committing illegal fundraising crimes using Shenzhen Dingyifeng Asset Management Co., Ltd., Hong Kong Dingyifeng International Holdings Group Co., Ltd., and their affiliated companies in Shenzhen and other locations.According to the relevant provisions of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China and the Criminal Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China, they were prosecuted for crimes including fundraising fraud, illegal absorption of public deposits, money laundering, embezzlement, smuggling across national (border) boundaries, and providing false certification documents to the Intermediate People's Court of Shenzhen, Guangdong Province.Previous reports indicated that the subjects involved in the case were suspected of engaging in illegal financial activities by issuing fictitious financial products and "DDO digital options," among other methods.

According to Ohmynews, the Gwangju District Prosecutor's Office in South Korea recently discovered a significant amount of Bitcoin related to criminal cases missing during a routine inspection of seized assets, with estimated losses reaching hundreds of billions of Korean won (reports mention internal rumors of about 70 billion won, or approximately 48 million USD).It is reported that the prosecution stored Bitcoin-related passwords and other information on mobile storage devices, and the loss may have occurred during the inspection due to accidental access to a so-called "fraud website." The official response from the Gwangju District Prosecutor's Office regarding this matter is "unable to confirm." An internal investigation has been initiated by the prosecution regarding this incident.

Federal Reserve Chairman Powell issued a statement that the U.S. Department of Justice delivered a grand jury subpoena to the Federal Reserve on Friday, targeting criminal charges related to his testimony before the Senate Banking Committee last June. Jerome H. Powell stated that the testimony involved a multi-year renovation project for the Federal Reserve building, but the real reason for the criminal charges is the Federal Reserve's setting of interest rates based on economic assessments, rather than following the president's preferences.He emphasized that the Federal Reserve must formulate monetary policy based on evidence and economic conditions, rather than being influenced by political pressure or intimidation. He will continue to fulfill the responsibilities confirmed by the Senate, committed to the mission of maintaining price stability and full employment.

The unlicensed virtual asset trading platform JPEX was revealed to be involved in fraud in 2023, with multiple artists and influencers implicated in deceiving investors and causing them to lose their assets. According to the latest disclosures from Hong Kong media, the Wen Wei Po, two suspects involved in money laundering of approximately HKD 26.4 million have been summoned in two separate cases at the District Court. The prosecution has confirmed that a notice for increased penalties has been issued and recorded by the court. Judge Ko Kin-sau has scheduled the two cases for further hearings on March 31 and April 9, respectively. It is reported that the police have prosecuted 16 individuals in this case so far.

The U.S. prosecution has submitted a letter to the Southern District of New York Federal Court opposing the court's acceptance of the amicus brief submitted by the digital asset advocacy organization DeFi Education Fund while considering whether to re-examine a case related to Ethereum MEV.U.S. Acting Attorney Jay Clayton stated in a document addressed to Judge Jessica Clarke that the brief "is detached from the trial record and merely reiterates legal arguments previously rejected by the court," and should not be accepted. The case involves brothers Anton and James Peraire-Bueno, who are accused of exploiting approximately $25 million through automated MEV bots on Ethereum. In November, the court declared a mistrial after the jury failed to reach a unanimous verdict on guilt or innocence. Subsequently, the U.S. government requested the court to schedule a retrial as soon as possible in late February or early March 2026.According to the draft brief submitted by DEF on December 19, the organization supports the dismissal of the case or a not guilty verdict, arguing that such prosecutions create uncertainty and fear for DeFi developers, potentially stifling industry innovation and driving participants away. The prosecution, however, contends that these views do not provide new legal grounds. The direction of the case remains unclear. If the brothers are found guilty of the same charges in the retrial, they could face up to 20 years in prison for each count. The outcome of the case is also seen within the industry as having significant implications for MEV behavior and the related compliance boundaries.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice website, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia successfully recovered 420,740.422314 USDT and 1,249,996.15 BUSD through civil asset forfeiture procedures, with a total value of nearly $1.7 million. These funds originated from cryptocurrency investment fraud proceeds and money laundering activities and are currently being returned to the victims.Court documents show that the scammers contacted victims via text messages and social media, posing as accidental contacts to lure victims into moving to encrypted chat applications. The scammers then gained the victims' trust and encouraged them to "invest" in cryptocurrency on a fraudulent investment website. This website mimicked legitimate cryptocurrency investment platforms but actually transferred the victims' funds to the scammers.

The U.S. prosecution recommends a 12-year prison sentence for Terraform Labs co-founder Do Kwon, due to his fraudulent actions that led to the $40 billion collapse of the TerraUSD stablecoin.Do Kwon will be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Paul Engelmayer on December 11.

According to Bloomberg, U.S. federal prosecutors are seeking to retry two brothers who are accused of stealing approximately $25 million in cryptocurrency from traders on the Ethereum blockchain.In court documents submitted later on Monday, U.S. government lawyers requested that District Court Judge Jessica Clarke schedule a new fraud trial as soon as possible, potentially as early as February. The two defendants involved in the case, James and Anton Peraire-Bueno, are both recent graduates of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

The police are investigating the cryptocurrency trading platform JPEX for suspected fraud. So far, 16 people have been prosecuted, one of whom has already appeared in court. The remaining 15 individuals are charged with conspiracy to commit fraud, money laundering, obstruction of justice, and offenses under the "Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance" for "fraudulently or recklessly inducing others to invest in virtual assets." Yesterday afternoon, they appeared in multiple cases at the Eastern Magistrates' Court, where the 15 defendants were not required to enter a plea at this time.The prosecution has applied to transfer the case of the first eight defendants to the High Court and has postponed the hearing until December 15. Among the eight defendants in the first case, the bail application of former artist Zheng Junxi was rejected by the court, and he must remain in custody, while the other seven were granted bail pending trial, with internet celebrity Lin Zuo and Chen Yingyi each bailed out for 300,000 HKD. Lin Zuo is charged with one count of fraud and an alternative charge (i.e., "fraudulently or recklessly inducing others to invest in virtual assets").The charges allege that between July 8 and September 12, 2023, he falsely represented or allowed others to make false statements and made fraudulent or reckless misrepresentations to induce others to enter into agreements related to the acquisition, disposal, subscription, or underwriting of virtual assets. The prosecution pointed out that Lin Zuo is accused of being able to successfully withdraw assets from JPEX and possessing internal information about JPEX that ordinary investors cannot access, claiming that investing in designated virtual assets through JPEX could yield a specific percentage of returns.

According to Hong Kong media Ming Pao, the Hong Kong police have prosecuted 16 individuals in the JPEX case, including internet celebrity Lam Chok, and the case will be heard tomorrow at the Eastern Magistrates' Court.It is reported that among the 16 individuals charged, 6 are core members of JPEX, involved in crimes such as conspiracy to commit fraud, money laundering, and obstruction of justice; 7 are members of a virtual currency over-the-counter trading platform; and 3 are puppet account holders. This is the first time the police have used the offense of "fraudulently or recklessly inducing others to invest in virtual assets" under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance for prosecution.So far, the police have arrested a total of 80 people, have identified two masterminds and one key member who are still at large, and have issued a red notice through Interpol. The case involves over 2,700 victims, with losses exceeding HKD 1.6 billion, and the police have frozen assets valued at approximately HKD 228 million. The police do not rule out the possibility of a second round of prosecutions.

The U.S. prosecutors are seeking a 5-year prison sentence for Samourai Wallet founders Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill, citing their long-term operation of an unregistered cryptocurrency mixing service that assisted in laundering at least $237 million, including proceeds from crimes such as drugs, the dark web, hacking, and illegal content. The two pleaded guilty in July and will be sentenced separately this week.

According to Decrypt, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York stated in a sentencing memorandum that Samourai Wallet founder Keonne Rodriguez and William Lonergan Hill solicited criminal users on the dark web and described "mixing" as "Bitcoin laundering." The two have pleaded guilty to "operating an unlicensed money transmission business and involving criminal proceeds," and the prosecution is seeking a maximum sentence of 5 years in prison under 18 U.S.C. §371.Authorities claim that the service laundered at least $237 million from 2015 to 2024, with the two charging fees of approximately 246.3 BTC (currently valued at about $26.9 million). Rodriguez is scheduled to be sentenced on November 6, with Hill's sentencing the following day.

ChainCatcher news, according to Decrypt, U.S. federal prosecutors have submitted a request to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals seeking to overturn the lenient sentence of the main perpetrators in the HashFlare cryptocurrency fraud case. Estonian citizens Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turõgin are accused of defrauding 440,000 investors worldwide through a $577 million Ponzi scheme, with prosecutors arguing that the original sentence was "exceptionally lenient."The two defendants have pleaded guilty, admitting to committing fraud through false mining contracts from 2015 to 2019, misleading investors with fake profit dashboards, and using the proceeds of the fraud to purchase luxury goods and pay returns to early investors. The original judge sentenced them to only three years of supervised release and a $25,000 fine each, while prosecutors had requested a 10-year prison sentence.The judge considered factors such as the risk of "indefinite detention" that foreign defendants might face in the U.S. Legal experts analyze that the reasoning for the sentence, based on "time served, immigration risks, and compensation considerations," is reasonable, and the Ninth Circuit usually respects the discretion of district judges, making it likely that the original sentence will be upheld.Currently, $400 million has been seized for victim compensation, and this case is referred to as the "largest fraud case" in the history of the Western District of Washington.

ChainCatcher news, according to Yonhap News Agency, the South Korean prosecution is seeking a three-year prison sentence for actress Hwang Jung-eum, who has been indicted for allegedly embezzling 4.3 billion won (approximately 3.07 million USD) and investing in virtual currency.The Jeju District Prosecutors' Office requested the court to sentence the indicted actress Hwang Jung-eum to three years in prison for the charge of embezzlement under the Act on the Aggravated Punishment, etc. of Specific Economic Crimes during a public trial held on the 21st at the Second Criminal Division of the Jeju District Court (presided over by Judge Lim Jae-nam).Earlier reports indicated that on June 17, South Korean actress Hwang Jung-eum (transliteration) was indicted for allegedly embezzling approximately 4.2 billion won (about 3.07 million USD) to invest in virtual currency. Her management company Y1 Entertainment stated on June 17 that Hwang Jung-eum had repaid all debts in two installments on May 30 and June 5. Previously, Hwang Jung-eum withdrew a total of 4.34 billion won from Tunmin Jeong-eum Entertainment around 2022, most of which was used for cryptocurrency investments. The case involves violations of the relevant provisions regarding embezzlement in the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes and is currently undergoing judicial proceedings.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, the co-founders of the defunct cryptocurrency mining service HashFlare, Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turõgin, have requested a U.S. court to waive additional imprisonment after admitting to telecom fraud. The two are accused of orchestrating a $577 million Ponzi scheme, resulting in approximately $300 million in losses.Prosecutors argue that both should be sentenced to 10 years in prison, stating that their crimes are among the largest fraud cases being tried in court. However, Potapenko and Turõgin contend that they have cooperated with the investigation and have served 16 months in prison in Estonia, and that their sentences should not be excessively long.The two were arrested in Estonia in November 2022 and are set to be extradited to the U.S. in May 2024. They are currently out on bail, with a sentencing hearing scheduled for August 14.

ChainCatcher news, according to Yonhap News Agency, South Korean prosecutors raided a group suspected of earning billions of won in fees through unregistered foreign exchange operations, seizing cryptocurrencies worth 4.4 billion won (approximately 3.2 million USD), including Ethereum.The group is suspected of conducting illegal currency exchanges over the past six years, profiting from transaction fees by receiving personal funds and using online payment platforms to recharge different currency accounts.

ChainCatcher news, according to the official WeChat account of Southwest University of Political Science and Law, on June 3, at the seminar on "Investigation, Prosecution, and Evidence Collection in Virtual Currency Crimes" hosted by Southwest University of Political Science and Law, senior consultant of Shanghai Xizheng Law Firm and TRON founder Sun Yuchen, prosecutor Li Tao from the Haidian District People's Procuratorate of Beijing, deputy director Wang Dong of the Eighth Procuratorial Division of the Chaoyang District People's Procuratorate of Beijing, vice dean Xie Ling of the Criminal Investigation College of Southwest University of Political Science and Law, deputy chief judge Jiang Jiayun of the First Criminal Division of the Chongqing High People's Court, chief lawyer Niu Juqin of Shanghai Xizheng Law Firm, and lecturer Ye Ning from the Law School of Southwest University of Political Science and Law delivered keynote speeches respectively.