Miami Man, 22, Pleads Guilty in $245 Million Bitcoin Heist — One of the Largest Crypto Thefts in U.S. History

A 22-year-old Singapore national who had been living in Miami pleaded guilty this week to running a scheme that stole and laundered more than $245 million in bitcoin from a single victim, then poured the stolen fortune into a spree of exotic cars, private jets, and nightclub blowouts.

Malone Lam admitted in a Washington, D.C. federal courtroom on Tuesday to one count of participating in a racketeering conspiracy. Prosecutors describe him as the ringleader of an international cybercrime network responsible for one of the biggest cryptocurrency thefts ever prosecuted in the United States. U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly accepted his plea and set a status hearing for December 8, without yet scheduling sentencing. Lam faces up to 20 years in prison.

An Unlikely Path to Alleged Ringleader

Lam’s backstory stands out even among cybercrime cases. He dropped out of school in the eighth grade in Singapore before eventually making his way to the U.S. and settling in Miami. According to prosecutors, he and his co-conspirators — young men mostly in their late teens and early twenties from California, Connecticut, New York, Florida, and abroad — didn’t meet through hacking forums or dark-web marketplaces. They connected through online gaming.

Investigators say Lam went by online aliases including “Anne Hathaway,” “$$$,” and “King Greavy.” As the organizer, he allegedly coordinated the roles of different conspirators, picked out targets, and helped run the group’s social engineering playbook.

How the Theft Happened

The scheme’s biggest single score came on August 18, 2024, when Lam and his associates targeted a wealthy, longtime cryptocurrency investor in Washington, D.C. Rather than hacking his accounts directly, two alleged co-conspirators posed as representatives of Google and the Gemini crypto exchange. Through that impersonation, they convinced the victim to hand over access to his Google Drive and reveal security codes — everything the group needed to drain his holdings.

Using that access, the conspirators siphoned off more than 4,100 bitcoin, worth over $230 million at the time and valued today at more than $245 million. Prosecutors say the broader enterprise, which ran from at least October 2023 through May 2025, relied on this kind of social engineering — and, in some cases, actual home break-ins — to trick victims into giving up control of their digital wallets. The Justice Department alleges the full network pulled in more than $263 million across its various thefts, a figure separate from the Washington victim’s loss.

Where the Money Went

Court filings paint a picture of extravagant, fast spending once the bitcoin was laundered. Prosecutors say Lam and his crew bought more than 30 exotic cars — Lamborghinis, Ferraris, and Porsches among them — along with a watch worth roughly $2 million. They rented Miami mansions, chartered private jets, hired security personnel, and in one notable evening at a Los Angeles nightclub, reportedly spent around $569,000 in a single night.

Lam was arrested at his rental home in Miami on September 18, 2024. A co-defendant, Anton Peraire-Bueno associate Jeandiel Serrano, was picked up separately by FBI agents at Los Angeles International Airport, allegedly wearing a $500,000 watch at the time of his arrest.

Part of a Much Larger Case

Lam is one of 18 people charged in connection with the sprawling investigation, and his guilty plea is the 11th secured by prosecutors so far. One co-conspirator, Evan Tangeman, was already sentenced to 70 months in prison earlier this year for laundering money tied to the scheme.

U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro said in a statement that Lam “led an international network that preyed on victims through deception, invaded their privacy, and stole hundreds of millions of dollars in cryptocurrency.”

Despite the plea, key questions remain unresolved — chiefly how much of the stolen bitcoin, cash, or property has actually been traced, seized, or returned to the victim. The Justice Department’s case describes an organization with distinct roles: hackers who mined personal data, organizers, people who identified targets, callers who impersonated tech-support or security staff, money launderers, and, in some instances, people willing to break into victims’ homes. Callers reportedly told victims their accounts were under attack and needed “securing” — the same trick that opened the door to the $245 million theft.

For now, Lam’s fate rests on his December 8 status hearing, with sentencing — and the question of restitution to his victim — still to