Morgan and partner Ilya Lichtenstein stole 120,000 Bitcoin worth $17 million from Bitfinex. After their February 2022 arrest, the pair pled guilty to conspiracy and money laundering in July 2023.
D.C. Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said Morgan knowingly committed major offenses and only stopped when compelled by law enforcement. Morgan claimed Lichtenstein's larceny was discovered later. Her court statement showed guilt and sorrow for helping her husband hack Bitfinex.
As suggested by prosecutors, a U.S. judge sentenced Morgan to 18 months. Lichtenstein, the hacker's mastermind, received a five-year sentence last week.
The maximum sentence was 25 years in prison. Lichtenstein and Morgan laundered 20% of criminal earnings. The pair forfeited all theft earnings after federal investigators stated they deceived the U.S. and used well-planned techniques to clean the money.
Investigators say Lichtenstein and Morgan traded assets across many chains, employed crypto mixers to hide their on-chain fingerprints, transferred crypto on dark web marketplaces, and acquired gold to launder stolen cash.
