After it became clear that several branches of US law enforcement had detained a man and a woman for conspiracy to launder nearly 120,000 BTC stolen from Bitfinex in 2016, the exchange’s crypto token skyrocketed in double digits. The 119,754 bitcoins stolen from Bitfinex in 2016 is one of the largest and most talked about heists in the cryptocurrency industry. While the stolen amount was worth about $70 million six years ago, today it is more than $5 billion due to the huge price increase of BTC. The anonymous hackers made numerous attempts over the years to transfer the stolen coins, but failed to pay out significant amounts because all associated wallets were blacklisted. After nearly six years, the US Department of Justice yesterday pointed to a very positive development on this front. A joint investigation by IRS-CI Washington, FBI’s Chicago Field Office, HSI-New York and others led to the arrest of Ilya Lichtenstein (34) and his wife – Heather Morgan (31) – for conspiracy to use the proceeds of the stolen bitcoins. Considering the importance of this event, Bitfinex’ native cryptocurrency responded in a very positive way. LEO was trading around $5 prior to the DOJ’s announcement, but rocketed more than 60% in the next few hours. In doing so, it surpassed a price tag of $8 and hit a new record at the time. Despite going back to just over $7 as of now, the token is still up double digits since yesterday. LEOUSD. Source: TradingView SPECIAL OFFER (Sponsored) Binance Free $100 (exclusive): Use this link to register and get $100 free and 10% off Binance Futures first month fees (conditions). PrimeXBT Special Offer: Use this link to register and enter POTATO50 code to receive up to $7,000 on your deposits.
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