Canadian Teen Arrested For Allegedly Stealing $36.5 Million In Crypto

Bitcoin fixed this.

A Canadian teen has been arrested for allegedly stealing $36.5 million worth of crypto from a victim in the U.S., Bloomberg reported this week. 

It marks the largest crypto theft reported from one person, police near Toronto said.

The victim was targeted by a SIM swapping scam, wherein someone hijacks a wireless customer’s phone number and then can intercept two-factor authentication codes – in addition to simply accessing accounts on their phone.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Secret Service Electronic Crimes Task Force joined together to make the arrest, according to the Hamilton, Ontario police. It’s the culmination of an investigation that started last March.

The Hamilton police seized crypto worth more than $5 million. Some of the stolen crypto was used to purchase a “rare” online gaming username, which was a key clue integral in helping investigators find out who committed the crime.

There was no further information on how much crypto had not been recovered or located – which may prove to make for an interesting story once the teen makes his way through the judicial system and pays his debt to society. 

The teenager has since been charged and has a court case pending.