In a direct deal with to the general public, Ilya Lichtenstein, who pleaded responsible final 12 months to fees linked to the 2016 theft of roughly 120,000 Bitcoin from the crypto trade Bitfinex, issued a brand new assertion on Thursday refuting alleged third-party involvement within the hack. His five-minute video, posted to X, represents Lichtenstein’s first publicly obtainable assertion since his arrest in 2022. He immediately challenged claims made in a Netflix documentary suggesting his father—or any exterior social gathering, together with attainable overseas intelligence businesses—participated within the notorious heist.
Lichtenstein Stole 120,000 Bitcoin Alone
Talking to the digicam, Lichtenstein mentioned: “I deliberate and executed the Bitfinex heist solely on my own. And I’m the one who bears full duty for all the pieces that has occurred.” He additional disputed different speculations, stating: “Any allegations that my aged and in no way tech-savvy father had any involvement in any hacking exercise ever are utterly false and admittedly absurd.”
The 2016 hack of Bitfinex stands as probably the most important safety breaches in crypto historical past. On the time, the theft of 120,000 Bitcoin was valued at roughly $72 million, although the present market worth of these cash is estimated to exceed $12.6 billion. Prosecutors have beforehand famous that Ilya’s spouse, Heather “Razzlekhan” Morgan, grew to become concerned solely after the very fact, having pleaded responsible to 1 depend of cash laundering conspiracy and one depend of conspiracy to defraud the USA.
Within the video, Lichtenstein maintained that Morgan’s function didn’t lengthen to hacking or orchestrating the theft itself: “Whereas it’s true that my spouse pleaded responsible to laundering a small portion of the funds, she was by no means concerned within the hack itself. She didn’t even learn about it for years.”
In keeping with official statements and the plea settlement, Lichtenstein has been cooperating with authorities to facilitate the return of stolen funds. Throughout the video, he reiterated these efforts: “For the previous three years, I’ve labored onerous to account for and return all belongings right down to the final Satoshi as required by my plea settlement. And I’ll proceed to take action all through the forfeiture and restitution course of, which is predicted to return greater than $10 billion by the primary quarter of subsequent 12 months.”
Lichtenstein overtly acknowledged his wrongdoing: “I hacked Bitfinex. I stole and laundered hundreds of Bitcoin. And I’m so sorry for all the pieces.” He expressed regret and a need to make amends, describing himself as having made “one unhealthy egocentric determination after one other” throughout the interval of the hack and its aftermath. Emphasizing his sole duty, he said: “No one else aside from me is liable for the hack.”
He additionally indicated plans for his future following the completion of his jail sentence: “When I’m launched from jail a few 12 months from now, I plan to dedicate myself to working within the cybersecurity business.” Claiming a novel perspective knowledgeable by his previous illicit actions, Lichtenstein believes he can contribute to cybersecurity defenses going ahead: “No one understands how hackers suppose like somebody who has been a hacker… I do know the cyber threats that we face, and I understand how to cease them.”
All claims, as Lichtenstein famous, will be verified by publicly obtainable court docket paperwork. He suggested Netflix viewers to learn these paperwork to develop their very own knowledgeable conclusions: “You don’t must take my phrase for it. The entire court docket paperwork laying out the info of the case are publicly obtainable. 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 picture from X, chart from TradingView.com
