In an immediate cope with to the general public, Ilya Lichtenstein, who pleaded accountable final yr to fees hooked up to the 2016 robbery of roughly 120,000 Bitcoin from the crypto alternate Bitfinex, issued a brand new observation on Thursday refuting alleged third-party involvement within the hack. His five-minute video, posted to X, represents Lichtenstein’s first publicly to be had observation since his arrest in 2022. He immediately challenged claims made in a Netflix documentary suggesting his father—or any exterior get together, together with conceivable international intelligence companies—participated within the notorious heist.
Lichtenstein Stole 120,000 Bitcoin By myself
Chatting with the digital camera, Lichtenstein stated: “I deliberate and performed the Bitfinex heist totally on my own. And I’m the one that bears complete duty for the whole thing that has took place.” He additional disputed different speculations, pointing out: “Any allegations that my aged and on no account tech-savvy father had any involvement in any hacking process ever are utterly false and admittedly absurd.”
The 2016 hack of Bitfinex stands as one of the vital safety breaches in crypto historical past. On the time, the robbery of 120,000 Bitcoin was once valued at roughly $72 million, despite the fact that the present marketplace worth of the ones cash is estimated to exceed $12.6 billion. Prosecutors have up to now famous that Ilya’s spouse, Heather “Razzlekhan” Morgan, was concerned handiest after the reality, having pleaded accountable to at least one depend of cash laundering conspiracy and one depend of conspiracy to defraud america.
Within the video, Lichtenstein maintained that Morgan’s position didn’t lengthen to hacking or orchestrating the robbery itself: “Whilst it’s true that my spouse pleaded accountable to laundering a small portion of the finances, she was once under no circumstances concerned within the hack itself. She didn’t even find out about it for years.”
Consistent with professional statements and the plea settlement, Lichtenstein has been cooperating with government to facilitate the go back of stolen finances. All through the video, he reiterated those efforts: “For the previous 3 years, I’ve labored laborious to account for and go back all property right down to the final Satoshi as required through my plea settlement. And I will be able to proceed to take action all through the forfeiture and restitution procedure, which is anticipated to go back greater than $10 billion through the primary quarter of subsequent yr.”
Lichtenstein overtly stated his wrongdoing: “I hacked Bitfinex. I stole and laundered hundreds of Bitcoin. And I’m so sorry for the whole thing.” He expressed regret and a want to make amends, describing himself as having made “one dangerous egocentric resolution after every other” all through the length of the hack and its aftermath. Emphasizing his sole duty, he mentioned: “No person else except for for me is chargeable for the hack.”
He additionally indicated plans for his long term following the crowning glory of his jail sentence: “When I’m launched from jail a couple of yr from now, I plan to commit myself to operating within the cybersecurity business.” Claiming a singular point of view knowledgeable through his previous illicit actions, Lichtenstein believes he can give a contribution to cybersecurity defenses going ahead: “No person understands how hackers assume like any individual who has been a hacker… I do know the cyber threats that we are facing, and I understand how to prevent them.”
All claims, as Lichtenstein famous, will also be verified through publicly to be had courtroom paperwork. He steered Netflix audience to learn those paperwork to broaden their very own knowledgeable conclusions: “You don’t must take my phrase for it. The entire courtroom paperwork laying out the information of the case are publicly to be had. You’ll be able to learn them your self and make up your individual thoughts.”
Neither representatives of Bitfinex nor Netflix have publicly commented on Lichtenstein’s video on the time of reporting.
At press time, Bitcoin traded at $102,371.
Featured symbol from X, chart from TradingView.com