Justice Dept. announces $3.6B crypto seizure, 2 arrests

By ERIC TUCKER
Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Justice Department has announced its largest-ever financial seizure — more than $3.5 billion — and the arrests of a New York couple accused of conspiring to launder billions of dollars in cryptocurrency. It says the cryptocurrency was stolen from the 2016 hack of a virtual currency exchange. Law enforcement officials on Tuesday revealed the Justice Department has seized roughly $3.6 billion in cryptocurrency linked to the hack of Bitfinex, a virtual currency exchange whose systems were breached nearly six years ago. Ilya Lichtenstein and his wife, Heather Morgan, were arrested in Manhattan on Tuesday. It’s unclear if they have lawyers or people who can speak on their behalf.