Singaporean Malone Lam and the cars he bought after he allegedly stole US$230 million in cryptocurrency from a victim in Washington. (Photos: Broward

How a Singaporean man allegedly stole US$230 million in cryptocurrency and what he spent it on

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2024-10-25 17:30:02

Singaporean Malone Lam and the cars he bought after he allegedly stole US$230 million in cryptocurrency from a victim in Washington. (Photos: Broward Sheriff's Office, court documents)

SINGAPORE: A Singaporean man who is accused of stealing and laundering US$230 million in cryptocurrency had pretended to be a Google employee to hoodwink his victim, court filings showed.

Together with his co-conspirator, Jeandiel Serrano, they allegedly stole over 4,100 bitcoin – worth about US$230 million at the time – from a victim in Washington.

The scam was described as “one of the largest cryptocurrency thefts from a private individual ... in the history of the United States”, prosecutors said.

On Wednesday (Oct 23) morning Singapore time, Serrano appeared in court for a status hearing. The court heard that both the prosecution and defence were “seeking a resolution of this matter short of a trial”, court records showed.

They requested about 60 days to continue plea negotiations and will inform the court if a deal is reached before the deadline.