22-year-old pleads guilty to stealing over $240 million in bitcoin heist
- Malone Lam, a 22-year-old Singaporean national, pleaded guilty to a federal racketeering conspiracy charge for stealing over $240 million in bitcoin from a Washington, D.C. resident.
- Lam and his co-conspirators duped the victim by posing as Google and Gemini crypto exchange representatives to gain access to security codes and siphon off 4,100 bitcoin.
- Following the theft, Lam embarked on a monthlong spending spree, purchasing a $2 million watch and over 30 high-end vehicles before his arrest by FBI agents in Miami.
- Lam faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, with his sentencing date in Washington, D.C. yet to be scheduled.
- The case highlights a sharp rise in cybercrime, as FBI complaints of cryptocurrency investment fraud surged by nearly 50 percent in 2025.
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