Most of the individuals were arrested this week in California.

May 16, 2025, 7:02 a.m.

U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged 12 individuals for stealing over $263 million in crypto. The individuals are linked to an earlier investigation where scammers were able to siphon off over $243 million from a Genesis creditor.

According to blockchain sleuth ZachXBT, last year one of the creditor of defunct trading firm Genesis was spoofed by a group of scammers, who were able to steal $243 million worth of digital assets and then redirect it through crypto mixers.

Several of the individuals charged, which includes U.S. nationals and foreign, were arrested in California this week, the DOJ said in a press release on Thursday. The remaining two individuals live abroad.

The charges on the individuals range from racketeering, wire fraud to money laundering, and obstruction of justice.

Read more: Police Arrest Two People Related to $243M Crypto Heist Targeting Genesis Creditor

Social engineering scams are being increasingly used by scammers to steal crypto. Scammers obtain certain personal information and then trick the user into sending them their crypto.

On Thursday, Coinbase revealed that scammers were able to bribe some of their overseas employees and stole important user data from their database. The exchange expects to voluntarily pay users between $180 million to $400 million for the data breach.

Read more: Coinbase Could Pay Customers Up to $400M for Data Breach

U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has charged 12 additional individuals in a racketeering conspiracy involving over $263 million in crypto fraud, money laundering, and home break-ins. The individuals are linked to an earlier investigation where scammers were able to siphon off over $243 million from a Genesis creditor. According to blockchain sleuth ZachXBT, last year one of the creditor of defunct trading firm Genesis was spoofed by a group of scammers, who were able to steal $243 million worth of digital assets and then redirect it through crypto mixers. Several of the individuals charged, which includes U.S. nationals and foreign, were arrested in California this week, the DOJ said in a press release on Thursday. The remaining two individuals live abroad. Social engineering scams are being increasingly used by scammers to steal crypto. Scammers obtain certain personal information and then trick the user into sending them their crypto. On Thursday, Coinbase revealed that scammers were able to bribe some of their overseas employees and stole important user data from their database. The exchange expects to voluntarily pay users between $180 million to $400 million for the data breach.