US mocks ‘bluster’ of pair charged in massive crypto scam

US prosecutors argue that the couple accused to laundering billions worth of Bitcoin shouldn't be given bail, mocking their "bluster" to even make such a request. — AFP

US prosecutors came out swinging against the Manhattan couple charged with trying to launder billions of dollars worth of Bitcoin stolen from the Bitfinex currency exchange, mocking the pair’s "bluster” in a request for bail and urging a judge to keep them locked up until trial.

Ilya Lichtenstein, 34, and Heather Morgan, 31, have "highly troubling” overseas ties and fraudulent identities as well as access to hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of cryptocurrency that make them flight risks, the US Justice Department said in a court filing Thursday in Washington.