Malone Lam, a 22-year old Singaporean national, pleaded guilty in US federal court to being the leader of an international cybercrime operation that stole and laundered more than $245 million worth of cryptocurrency.** The guilty plea was entered on September 8, 2026 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
Lam pleaded guilty to one count of participating in a RICO conspiracy a charge that could carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. A status hearing has been set for December 8, 2026.
Who Is Malone Lam?
Malone Lam is a Singaporean citizen who had been living in Miami. US prosecutors identified him as the organiser of an elaborate cybercrime network that targeted cryptocurrency holders via social engineering.
Lam was said to have used online aliases including “Anne Hathaway,” and “King Greavy.” Prosecutors said the network grew out of relationships formed on online gaming sites and evolved into a coordinated operation involving people in the U.S. and abroad.
The enterprise allegedly began no later than October 2023 and continued through at least May 2025. Members had various roles: they identified targets, contacted victims, obtained access information and laundered stolen cryptocurrency.
How Did the Crypto Heist Work?
Social engineering was used heavily by the group tricking victims into revealing sensitive information rather than simply hacking their accounts (technical hacking).
Members “pretended to be representatives of trusted technology and cryptocurrency companies,” prosecutors said. They used deception to steal passwords, security codes and other information that could grant access to victims’ digital assets.
One of the largest was in August 2024 when Lam and his cohorts stole more than 4,100 Bitcoin from a victim in Washington D.C.. The cryptocurrency was worth about $230 million at the time and more than $245 million according to the government’s broader valuation of the enterprise.
From Crypto Theft to Lavish Spending
Police said the stolen cryptocurrency was converted and laundered before being used to fund an extravagant lifestyle.
Prosecutors described exotic cars, luxury watches, designer clothing, rental homes and private jets as well as expensive nightclub events (some nightclub spending reportedly was hundreds of thousands of dollars in a single evening). They rented luxury homes in Miami, Los Angeles and the Hamptons.
The lavish lifestyle eventually caught law enforcement’s eye. Lam was arrested in Miami on September 18, 2025 by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, according to the release.
A Major Breakthrough for US Investigators
Lam is one of 18 defendants charged in the broader caseand the 11th to plead guilty, CNA says. His admission is a major development in the probe into an international cryptocurrency crime ring.
The case is being investigated by FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation division along with federal prosecutors in Washington.
Lam’s guilty plea also shows how sophisticated cryptocurrency crime is becoming. As digital assets become more widely used criminals are increasingly using online deception, identity impersonation and money laundering to target wealthy crypto holders.
For now Lam waits for further proceedings in Washington. His status hearing in December is expected to be the next big development in a case prosecutors describe as an international cybercrime operation on a large scale.
