U.S. Justice Department Announces Ninth Guilty Plea in $263 Million Bitcoin Laundering Case
Key Takeaways
- The U.S. Justice Department has announced that a ninth defendant in the $263 million RICO scheme has pleaded guilty. The group, composed of hackers, callers, identifiers, and burglars, ran the scheme between October 2023 and May 2025.
- 22-year-old Evan Tangeman assisted the social engineering hack by helping the perpetrators convert stolen crypto into bulk cash. He admitted to laundering $3.5 million in cash, accessed security footage during an FBI raid, and warned other members to destroy hardware devices to obstruct the investigation.
- The group, led by Malone Lam, hacked into the databases of major crypto platforms and identified potential victims. Callers convinced the subjects to provide access to their accounts in the name of helping them, while the burglars were sent in to steal hardware wallets.
- Last year, they stole 4,100 BTC from a D.C. resident. These coins, worth $263 million at the time, were funneled through token mixer platforms and privacy chains before being converted into cash. The funds were then used to purchase luxury items, obtain rental homes, and hire private security.
The U.S. Department of Justice (DoJ) has announced that the ninth defendant in a multi-million dollar social engineering scheme that targeted crypto users across the country has pleaded guilty to their charges.
The individual identified as 22-year-old California resident Evan Tangeman has admitted to participating in a Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) style crypto theft that drained roughly $263 million in Bitcoin from a single wallet.
California Man Pleads Guilty in $263M Crypto Scam as RICO Charges Loom
In a statement released last Thursday, the DoJ said Tangeman admitted to a federal court in Washington, D.C., that he laundered over $3.5 million for a “social engineering enterprise,” which ran its scheme from October 2023 to May 2025. The court also unsealed a second superseding indictment that added three other defendants – Nicholas “Nic” Dellecave, Mustafa “Krust” Ibrahim, and Danish “Danny” Zulfiqar – who were arrested and charged with RICO conspiracy.
Members of this crypto crime syndicate are a group of friends who met via online gaming platforms and were spread across California, Connecticut, New York, Florida, and abroad. The gang is composed of database hackers, organizers, target identifiers, callers posing as support staff for major crypto platforms and email service providers, money launderers, and burglars.
The hackers accessed websites and servers to steal databases, while the identifiers used that information to determine the most vulnerable targets. Callers then convinced the victims that their accounts were subject to a cyber-attack and were there to help secure their funds. If the victims possessed a hardware wallet, then the burglars were sent to steal the devices from their homes.
Last year, the group targeted a D.C. resident and siphoned more than 4,100 BTC, worth approximately $263 million at that time. At today’s Bitcoin price, the same haul is worth around $370 million.
They used the stolen bitcoins to purchase millions of dollars’ worth of luxury items, including cars, watches, and handbags, access nightclub services, rent homes and private jets, and hire a team of private security guards. Prosecutors say the syndicate first converted portions of the haul into the Monero (XMR) privacy coin before routing the funds through opaque exchanges and crypto-to-cash brokerages.
Cybercrime and Violence Lead Prosecutors to Call the Case Organized
Tangeman’s role in the scheme was to assist the group by using bulk-cash converters to exchange the stolen digital assets into cash, which the members used to obtain rental properties under false identities. He also helped the operation’s ring leader, Malone Lam, collect roughly $3 million in cash immediately after the 4,100 BTC was stolen.
Lam and co-defendant Jeandiel Serrano were arrested by authorities last September and were charged with fraud and money laundering. Investigators were helped by blockchain sleuths like ZachXBT, who traced the stolen funds through token mixer platforms and peel chains.
Tangeman also admitted to monitoring home-security feeds of Lam’s Miami residence during an FBI raid, and informing another member of the group to retrieve and destroy all hardware devices to obstruct investigations. He will now face sentencing before a U.S. District Judge, scheduled for April 24, 2026.
Legal experts said that by applying RICO charges, law enforcement officials are viewing these cases not as isolated hacks, but as an organized operation. The perpetrators’ use of physical violence on top of cybercrime allowed the prosecutors to charge fraud, money laundering, and related violence under a single legal theory.
At the time of writing, Bitcoin (BTC) is trading at $90,366 – down 1.56% in 24 hours.
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