Update 26 June, 12:20 pm UTC: This article has been revised to incorporate statements from Bing Wang, Head of Legal at BasedVC.
A jury in Greensboro, North Carolina, has found Remy St. Felix, a 24-year-old resident of West Palm Beach, Florida, guilty of orchestrating a series of violent home invasions in order to steal victims’ cryptocurrencies.
St. Felix was charged with nine offenses, including conspiracy, kidnapping, Hobbs Act robbery, wire fraud, and brandishing a firearm to facilitate his crypto-related crimes.
The conviction of St. Felix on June 25 followed a trial that revealed his leadership role in an international plot to target American citizens for their crypto assets.
Sandra Hairstone, U.S. attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina, stated in a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice:
“St. Felix and his co-conspirators carried out home invasions in multiple states, including North Carolina, Florida, Texas, and New York. They resorted to physical violence, kidnapping, and threats to coerce their victims into providing access to and transferring their crypto holdings to the perpetrators.”
During an incident on April 12, 2023, St. Felix and his accomplice, Elmer Ruben Castro, forcibly entered a residence, restrained the occupants, and demanded access to their crypto accounts.
The investigation into these crimes was led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Charlotte Field Office, with assistance from various other field offices and local police departments.
Despite the criminals’ attempts to cover their tracks using sophisticated money-laundering techniques and encrypted communication, investigators were able to connect their activities and apprehend them.
Executive Assistant Director Timothy Langan of the FBI’s Criminal, Cyber, Response, and Services Branch commented:
“Crypto-related crimes are on the rise, but law enforcement agencies have developed methods for tracking stolen crypto and identifying the individuals responsible due to the transparent nature of blockchain technology.”
Bing Wang, Head of Legal at BasedVC, also discussed the increase in cryptocurrency-based crimes, emphasizing that law enforcement agencies now have the tools to track stolen crypto and apprehend the perpetrators.
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