On May 14, authorities arrested brothers Anton and James Peraire-Bueno on counts of crypto fraud and money laundering.
Their crime?
Stealing $25 million worth of crypto in just 12 seconds.
First Of It’s Kind Crypto Fraud
Anton and James Peraire-Bueno are two MIT graduates who are accused of plotting for months a scheme to commit mass crypto fraud…
And launder their illicit funds through numerous shell companies.
The brothers studied math and computer science at one of the country’s most prestigious universities…
Prosecutors cited their education as giving them the skills they needed to pull off a crime at this extremity.
ESSENTIALLY, THE TWO TARGETED A VULNERABILITY IN ETHERUM BLOCKCHAIN.
They baited three trading victims and exploited “validators” in the blockchain. The validators are what keep the integrity of the transactions, making them secure.
Prosecutors suspect the operation took months to prepare and only 12 seconds to execute.
In the aftermath of the crypto fraud…
The brothers laundered the nearly estimated $25 million through different shell companies.
Beyond the conspiracy, a victim and their attorney…
Besides a representative from Ethereum…
Asked to have the funds returned…
ONLY FOR THE TWO BROTHERS TO REFUSE.
This form of crypto fraud is truly the first of its kind. Prosecutors are formally charging the pair with wire fraud and conspiracy to commit money laundering…
Stating in the court documents:
“…THEY FRAUDULENTLY GAINED ACCESS TO PENDING PRIVATE TRANSACTIONS AND USED THAT ACCESS TO ALTER CERTAIN TRANSACTIONS AND OBTAIN THEIR VICTIMS’ CRYPTOCURRENCY,”
The Future Of Crypto
Certainly, while the world of finance is obsessing over this crypto boom…
It’s worth remembering that any investment, even crypto, is going to have some bad actors interested in exploiting it for their own gain…
This form of crypto fraud may be new, nevertheless, we must stay vigilant about where our money is coming from…
And where it might end up.
Be Great,
GCTV Staff
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