In a major victory for online sleuths and cryptocurrency investigators, authorities have arrested two men in Los Angeles and Miami in connection with a $243 million crypto theft that took place last month.
The arrests came after weeks of intensive investigation, led in part by renowned crypto researcher ZachXBT and supported by the Binance Security Team and other crypto forensics experts.
The theft occurred on August 19, 2024, and targeted a single creditor of cryptocurrency exchange Genesis through a sophisticated social engineering attack. The criminals, identified as Greavys (Malone Iam), Wiz (Veer Chetal), and Box (Jeandiel Serrano), used a range of sophisticated techniques to steal the victim’s funds.
Initially posing as Google Support to compromise personal accounts, these individuals then impersonated Gemini exchange support to convince the victim that their account had been compromised. Using tactics such as tricking the victim into resetting two-factor authentication (2FA) and sharing their private keys via AnyDesk remote access software, the thieves transferred $243 million from the victim’s account to a series of compromised wallets.
According to ZachXBT, who published a detailed thread about the incident, the funds were quickly distributed across multiple wallets and exchanges, where they were exchanged between various cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin, Litecoin, Ethereum, and Monero. Despite their efforts to cover their tracks, the criminals made several critical mistakes. Veer Chetal, also known as “Wiz,” accidentally revealed his identity during a screen sharing session, allowing investigators to link him to the crime. Similarly, his partner “Light/Dark” (Aakaash), who helped launder funds through eXch and Thorswap, also leaked his personal information during a similar session.
One of the ringleaders, Malone Iam, known as “Greavys,” flaunted his stolen wealth by buying luxury items including cars, jewelry and even Birkin bags. His lavish lifestyle, documented through social media posts, was key to his capture. Investigators used open-source intelligence (OSINT) to track his movements between Los Angeles and Miami, where he frequented nightclubs and luxury venues and spent up to $500,000 a night.
Working with crypto forensics researcher zeroShadow and Binance’s security team, ZachXBT was instrumental in tracing the funds and identifying the criminals. With the help of blockchain analysis, the team was able to freeze over $9 million in stolen funds, with $500,000 being returned to the victim.
The investigation resulted in the arrests of Greavys and Box in Los Angeles and Miami. Law enforcement is expected to seize additional funds from the suspects’ accounts following significant transfers made during the arrests. ZachXBT noted that while most of the stolen money was converted to Monero (XMR), a cryptocurrency known for its privacy features, the criminals made several errors that allowed investigators to connect the laundered funds to the stolen assets.
More arrests and fund recovery are expected as authorities continue to pursue other suspects involved in the incident, including Danny Trauma (Danish) and other accomplices.
*This is not investment advice.
