A cryptocurrency investor in Washington, DC, lost more than $ 240 million in Bitcoin in 2024. The incident took place after a group of young scammers allegedly posed as Google and Gemini executives. Malone Lam, a 22-year-old Singaporean eighth-grade dropout accused of organising the scheme, has pleaded guilty to his role in the theft.An AP report claims that after obtaining more than 4,100 Bitcoin, Lam and his associates allegedly spent the proceeds on fleets of sports cars, private jets, rented mansions, luxury watches and nightclub outings, with Lam spending more than $569,000 at a Los Angeles nightclub in a single evening.
22-year-old school dropout pleads guilty in $240 million Bitcoin theft
Lam, an eighth-grade dropout from Singapore, pleaded guilty to a racketeering conspiracy charge in federal court in Washington, DC. His guilty plea makes him the 11th of 18 defendants charged in the wider investigation to plead guilty, according to prosecutors. The case centers on a network of young men who allegedly used social engineering to manipulate victims into handing over information or access to steal cryptocurrency.The theft at the center of the case took place on August 18, 2024. Prosecutors say Lam, Veer Chetal and Jeandiel Serrano targeted a wealthy, longtime cryptocurrency investor in Washington, DC. The callers allegedly first posed as a Google representative investigating attempted breaches of the victim’s account, then as representatives of the Gemini cryptocurrency exchange warning about a malware attack affecting his crypto wallet.The victim was manipulated into providing access to his Google Drive and revealing security codes. Those details allegedly gave Lam the access needed to transfer more than 4,100 Bitcoin. The cryptocurrency was worth more than $240 million at the time, making the theft one of the largest cryptocurrency thefts in US history.The conspirators then allegedly used money laundering specialists and multiple cryptocurrency exchanges to move the stolen assets and convert them into government-issued currency. Prosecutors say the group had already carried out other multimillion-dollar cryptocurrency thefts using similar methods after meeting through online gaming forums in late 2023.
How a missed IP address helped investigators trace the stolen Bitcoin
The group attempted to conceal its digital trail, but investigators eventually found a link through Serrano. Prosecutors say he failed to hide his IP address when he created an account on a cryptocurrency exchange to hold nearly $30 million in stolen cryptocurrency.Investigators traced the IP address to a home in Encino, California, that Serrano was renting for $47,500 a month. By then, Serrano was vacationing in the Maldives, while Lam and his associates were spending the proceeds in Los Angeles and Miami.A private recording later captured the group realising how much cryptocurrency they had obtained. In a video posted by cryptocurrency crime investigator ZachXBT, one voice can be heard saying, “Oh, my God! Bro, bro, I’m going to spaz out!”The spending that followed quickly became another part of the investigation. Authorities say Lam and his friends spent roughly $4 million at Los Angeles nightclubs in a single month, while Lam bought more than 30 vehicles, including custom Porsches, Lamborghinis and Ferraris. He also allegedly purchased a watch worth about $2 million.
Sports cars, mansions and a $569,000 nightclub bill
The stolen cryptocurrency funded a lifestyle that included private jets, security guards and rented mansions in Miami and the Hamptons. Lam also allegedly spent hundreds of thousands of dollars per night at clubs and threw handbags worth tens of thousands of dollars to women in the crowds.One of the largest individual expenses was Lam’s reported $569,000 bill at a Los Angeles nightclub during a single evening. Prosecutors say the spending was part of a month-long spree that began soon after the Bitcoin theft.Chetal allegedly used some of his share to buy a Lamborghini for his parents and hid a duffel bag containing $500,000 in cash inside their washing machine. The sudden display of wealth also attracted attention within cryptocurrency scammer circles.About a week after the Bitcoin theft, several masked men allegedly abducted Chetal’s parents in Danbury, Connecticut. The attackers reportedly forced the couple from their new car, beat Chetal’s father with a baseball bat, put both of them into a van and bound their hands. Prosecutors say the group, which had travelled from Miami, intended to use the couple to pressure Chetal into surrendering his share of the stolen cryptocurrency. The plan failed after witnesses contacted police and the alleged carjackers were arrested.FBI raided Chetal’s apartment in Brunswick, New Jersey, on September 9, 2024, and recovered nearly $37 million in stolen cryptocurrency, the source material claimed. However, Chetal later agreed to cooperate with investigators.
FBI arrests after month of lavish spending
Prosecutors confirmed that Serrano was arrested on Sept. 18, 2024, at Los Angeles International Airport wearing a watch estimated to be worth about $500,000. He first denied any involvement but then admitted to having some of the $20 million of the Washington victim’s stolen cryptocurrency.Prosecutors arrested Lam the same day at one of his Miami mansions. According to the indictment, an off-duty law enforcement officer had warned him that authorities were coming to arrest him.After his arrest, Lam was recorded speaking to associates from jail. According to the indictment, he said, “We always talked about what it would be like if I were to go down, but never thought it would be this crazy.”At Lam’s initial court appearance in Miami, prosecutors outlined the scale of his alleged spending. US Magistrate Judge Alicia Valle responded, “I could only think of Ferris Bueller gone bad,” referring to the school-skipping protagonist of the 1986 film Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.The arrests did not immediately end the flow of stolen money. Ferro, another defendant who pleaded guilty to a racketeering conspiracy charge last year, allegedly used stolen funds to pay Lam’s legal expenses.
18 defendants charged as investigation continues
The federal investigation has resulted in charges against 18 people. Lam would become the 11th defendant to plead guilty, while three of his co-conspirators have already been sentenced.US District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly, who is presiding over Lam’s case, sentenced two money launderers to about six years in prison. Prosecutors previously estimated that Lam’s sentencing guidelines could recommend at least 14 years in prison upon conviction.Chetal pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges in November 2024 and is awaiting sentencing. Serrano’s charges remain pending.Tucker Desmond, who pleaded guilty to destroying evidence related to the crimes of other members of the group, was sentenced to probation. At his March sentencing hearing, Desmond apologised and said he “got obsessed with the image of success rather than actually becoming a hard-working individual myself.”Ferro declined to address the court at his May sentencing hearing. His attorney, Kevin Wilson, described the defendants as mischievous “young kids,” but Judge Kollar-Kotelly rejected youth as a complete explanation for their conduct.“Being young only goes so far,” Kollar-Kotelly said.The case also highlights the growing use of social engineering in cryptocurrency crime. Cybersecurity researcher Allison Nixon, who has tracked The Com, an underground community of young hackers, said the amount of money available through cryptocurrency fraud has helped fuel the activity.“If we don’t seriously ramp up the resources to take these people down and do it faster, then it’s going to spread more and more,” Nixon said.The broader issue has also drawn attention as cryptocurrency-related fraud complaints have increased. FBI complaints involving cryptocurrency investment fraud rose by nearly 50% in 2025, according to the source material. The Justice Department also disbanded a unit dedicated to prosecuting crypto-related crimes last year.Lam’s guilty plea marks the latest step in an investigation that began with an online social network of young hackers and developed into a scheme targeting cryptocurrency holders. What started with impersonating trusted technology and financial companies ultimately led to the theft of thousands of Bitcoin, a month-long spending spree and federal charges against 18 people.
