Crypto Hacker Ilya Lichtenstein Credits Trump's First Step Act for Early Prison Release
Ilya Lichtenstein, known for his involvement in the 2016 Bitfinex hack, pleaded guilty to a money laundering conspiracy connected to the theft and was sentenced to five years in prison in November 2024.
The 2016 Bitfinex hack involved the theft of 119,754 BTC, which was valued at approximately $71 million at the time and amounts to more than $10 billion at current prices. Authorities have recovered about 94,000 BTC, leaving around 25,000 BTC still missing.
Lichtenstein and his wife Heather Morgan, also known as Razzlekhan, were arrested in February 2022. Morgan received an 18-month sentence and was released after about eight months in October prior to this article.
As part of his plea deal, Lichtenstein admitted to the hack and money laundering charges, stating he converted about 25,000 BTC into other cryptocurrencies and physical gold. However, most assets were recovered by the U.S. government according to a TRM report.
Lichtenstein was released after serving 14 months of his sentence due to the First Step Act, a 2018 prison and sentencing reform law signed by President Donald Trump. He publicly thanked the First Step Act for his early release and expressed a continued commitment to cybersecurity while addressing his critics on social media.
His release coincides with ongoing debate over presidential clemency in cryptocurrency-related cases. Although President Trump's use of executive clemency has faced criticism, Lichtenstein himself was not pardoned.
In January 2025, U.S. prosecutors filed a motion requesting that the recovered Bitcoin be returned to Bitfinex.
