U.S. Files Civil Forfeiture To Recover Millions in Pig Butchering Scams

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Julia Smith

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Julia Smith

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Julia is an experienced editor with a passion for covering a wide variety of beats. She loves all things politics and regularly covers regulatory updates on emerging technology here for Crypto News.

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July 17, 2024

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The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia filed a civil forfeiture action on Tuesday in hopes of recovering cryptocurrency stolen from abroad – including $2 million USDT – in “pig butchering” schemes, a Tuesday July 17 press release reveals.

The U.S. Looks To Recover Millions Of Stolen Crypto In USDT

A “pig butchering” scheme is a scamming technique wherein victims are lured into making contributions to fraudsters – typically in the form of cryptocurrency – who manipulate and exploit their trust. The name for the grim tactic analogizes the sudden theft predated by a period of trust-building experienced by unwitting victims with fattening pigs before slaughter, “ultimately causing the victim financial and emotional harm.”

The civil forfeiture filing, a move that grants the government the ability to seize perpetrated assets, will see the multi-million digital asset bounty located primarily in two Thailand-based accounts retrieved.

“Our office will find and hold accountable criminal organizations – whether they operate within the United States or outside of if – that use fraudulent investment schemes like ‘pig butchering’ to defraud victims in the U.S.,” said U.S. Attorney Graves. “This forfeiture action demonstrates that scammers cannot hide their illegal activity by using cryptocurrency and engaging in complicated transactions: we will find them, seize their illegal proceeds, and get money back to the victims.”

Pig Butchering Schemes On The Rise, Officials Warn

“Pig butchering schemes” have seemingly received greater attention in recent months due to a surge in their popularity, with the U.S. The Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) released an alert in September of last year notifying the public of their drastic rise.

A new study published this year by University of Texas Professor John Griffin shows that as much as $75 billion may have been stolen by individuals operating the schemes in the past four years alone.

Last fall, Tether froze $225 million linked to an international human trafficking syndicate in Southeast Asia as part of an investigation by the Department of Justice, making it the largest freezing of stablecoins in U.S. history.

“The rate at which bad actors are using elaborate pig-butchering schemes to defraud innocent people is despicable,” said FBI Special Agent in Charge Moy. “The FBI and our law enforcement partners continue to evolve investigative techniques to thwart the progression of this threat and use all available resources to ensure we disrupt and dismantle organizations responsible for contributing to these crimes.”