ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, the auction of items belonging to Ross Ulbricht, the founder of the dark web marketplace "Silk Road," has raised approximately 1.8 million dollars in Bitcoin. The auction items include paintings created by Ulbricht while in prison, personal belongings, and his prison ID. Among them, the prison ID was sold for the highest bid of 11 BTC (approximately 1.1 million dollars). Ulbricht stated that this auction is to open a new chapter in his life.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht delivered a keynote speech at the Bitcoin 2025 conference held in Las Vegas. This is his first public speech since being pardoned by President Trump and released from prison in January this year.Ulbricht emphasized the importance of the three principles of freedom, decentralization, and unity. He stated that the support from the crypto community has enabled him to regain his freedom and expressed his astonishment at the technological advancements he has encountered over the past four months, including innovations such as decentralized finance (DeFi), Web3, and artificial intelligence. He urged the crypto community to remain united and adhere to the principles of decentralization to ensure future freedom.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, a man in the United States has been sentenced to six years in prison for operating a so-called "no questions asked" cash-to-Bitcoin service and ordered to forfeit millions of dollars.On May 22, U.S. District Judge Richard Stearns announced that Trung Nguyen from Danvers, Massachusetts, was sentenced to six years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to forfeit $1.5 million in assets.Prosecutors stated that Nguyen operated an unlicensed money transfer business called National Vending from September 2017 to October 2020, using various methods learned from an online course to evade regulation. Nguyen learned how to conceal his true business from banks, cryptocurrency exchanges, and state regulators, such as disguising as a vending machine company that accepted cash deposits, fabricating a fictitious list of suppliers, and avoiding the use of the term "Bitcoin" whenever possible.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, a New York jury found former SafeMoon CEO Braden Karony guilty of conspiracy to commit fraud, money laundering, and telecommunications fraud, all felonies, with the jury reaching a verdict in just one day after a two-week trial. Karony is accused of misappropriating funds for personal use, facing a maximum sentence of 45 years. His co-defendant Smith has turned state’s witness, while Nagy is suspected of fleeing to Russia.Previous news, the former SafeMoon CEO insists on his innocence and blames the founders.

ChainCatcher news, according to official reports, a typical case recently released by the Haidian Court reveals that a user manager of a certain network technology company took advantage of his position to accept bribes and embezzle virtual currency in a virtual currency reward business, with a total amount involved of 9.74 million yuan.The user manager was sentenced to 12 years in prison by the court for the crime of accepting bribes as a non-state worker and for embezzlement. The case shows that from 2014 to 2019, the defendant obtained 6.08 million yuan in bribes by introducing supplier cooperation and profited 3.66 million yuan by cashing out part of the virtual currency through multiple accounts. This case is the longest prison sentence for corruption crimes committed by internal personnel of internet companies in the past five years.

ChainCatcher news, recently, the Haidian Court, in conjunction with the China Internet Association, released the "White Paper on Corruption Crimes by Internal Personnel of Internet Enterprises" and published typical cases.In one case, a user manager of a certain network technology company introduced a supplier to cooperate on virtual currency business, accepted bribes, and embezzled virtual currency for cashing out. Ultimately, the court sentenced him to nine years in prison for bribery and six years for embezzlement, deciding to execute a total of twelve years in prison.

According to ChainCatcher news, a 26-year-old Alabama resident, Eric Council Jr., was sentenced to 14 months in prison for participating in the hacking of the official Twitter account of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and posting false news about the approval of a Bitcoin ETF. He gained control of the SEC account through a SIM swap attack, causing significant fluctuations in Bitcoin prices.According to court documents, Council obtained a SIM card associated with the SEC's phone number at an AT&T store in Alabama on January 9, 2024, using forged identification. He then purchased a new phone to receive the SEC X account password reset. His accomplices used that access to post false news about the approval of a Bitcoin ETF, resulting in a surge of over $1,000 in Bitcoin prices within a short period, followed by a drop of more than $2,000 after the SEC clarified the situation.In addition to imprisonment, the court also ordered the forfeiture of his illegal gains of $50,000 and imposed three years of supervised release, during which he is prohibited from using the dark web and committing identity fraud. Investigations revealed that Council was also involved in multiple SIM swap attacks, profiting approximately $50,000 from them.This case was jointly investigated by the FBI's Washington office and the SEC's Office of Inspector General, highlighting the regulatory agencies' efforts to combat the manipulation of financial markets through cybercrime. The head of the Department of Justice's Criminal Division emphasized the commitment to holding accountable those who threaten the integrity of the digital asset market.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, the U.S. government has requested a federal judge to sentence Eric Council Jr. to two years in prison. Eric Council Jr. is the person who helped disseminate false information, which was announced through the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)'s X account regarding the approval of a Bitcoin spot ETF.In documents submitted to the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on May 12, prosecutors recommended that the judge sentence Council to two years in prison for posting false information on the social media platform X, claiming that the SEC had approved a spot Bitcoin ETF for the first time in January 2024. This false statement shook the market approximately 24 hours before the SEC actually approved the spot Bitcoin ETF, ultimately leading to Council's arrest.

ChainCatcher news, according to Inner City Press, former CEO of the cryptocurrency lending platform Celsius, Alex Mashinsky, has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for cryptocurrency-related fraud. The judge has ordered him to surrender by September 12 at the latest.Mashinsky (59) had previously pleaded guilty to two charges of commodity fraud and a fraudulent scheme to manipulate the price of the company's native token (CEL). Prosecutors stated that he "orchestrated one of the largest frauds in the crypto industry" and had suggested a 20-year prison sentence.

ChainCatcher news, according to the official website of the U.S. Department of Justice, a man from Springfield, Virginia, Mohammed Azharuddin Chhipa, has been sentenced to 364 months (approximately 30 years) in prison for funding the terrorist organization ISIS through cryptocurrency.According to court records and trial evidence, from October 2019 to October 2022, Chhipa raised funds via social media, converted the proceeds into cryptocurrency, and transferred them to Turkey, ultimately flowing to ISIS members in Syria to fund their prison escapes and support terrorist activities. During this period, he provided over $185,000 in cryptocurrency to ISIS.

ChainCatcher news, according to Cointelegraph, Celsius founder Alex Mashinsky expressed strong dissatisfaction with the U.S. Department of Justice's proposed 20-year prison sentence. Previously, Mashinsky pleaded guilty in December 2024 to commodity fraud and manipulating the price of CEL tokens, profiting $48 million by selling tokens before the collapse of Celsius. His legal team submitted a response memorandum to the New York District Court on May 5, requesting to reduce the sentence to less than 366 days, arguing that Mashinsky is a first-time non-violent offender with a 30-year unblemished business record. Celsius filed for bankruptcy protection in July 2022, with liabilities of $4.7 billion, affecting the assets of hundreds of thousands of users.

ChainCatcher news, according to Decrypt, Binance founder Changpeng Zhao admitted in an interview with Rug Radio that his four-month imprisonment in the U.S. was "extremely difficult" and "terrifying," and he stated that he "would not wish that experience on anyone." However, this experience also made him realize the importance of health and family.He recalled that when he first entered prison, facing tattooed, loud, and large inmates, he felt a strong sense of unease and fear. His cellmate had been sentenced to 30 years for double murder, but the two got along relatively well. Due to his non-U.S. citizen status, he was unable to enter a minimum-security prison and was sent to a low-security facility.Despite being the founder of Binance and having a billion-dollar fortune, his fellow inmates did not treat him differently. Zhao stated that many of his fellow inmates were very friendly, and he still keeps in touch with several of them.For him, the hardest part was the mental pressure—worrying that his sentence might be suddenly extended. He pointed out that many friends in prison faced similar fates.This experience led him to reevaluate life, stating, "Health is the most important, followed by family, then work and other things." Zhao also revealed that he will publish a new book detailing his experiences during his imprisonment.

ChainCatcher news, according to CoinDesk, Alex Mashinsky, the founder and former CEO of the now-defunct cryptocurrency lending platform Celsius Network, faces the possibility of spending the next 20 years in prison—if the sentencing recommendation submitted by the U.S. Department of Justice is adopted by the court. The sentencing is set for May 8.In the recommendation submitted late Monday, the Department of Justice urged the court to impose a 20-year prison sentence, stating that Mashinsky's crimes were "deliberate and meticulously planned" fraudulent acts that resulted in nearly $7 billion in customer losses, leaving thousands of people financially devastated.

ChainCatcher news, the official account of the Intermediate People's Court of Anshun City, Guizhou Province disclosed a case. The court of Guanling Autonomous County publicly tried and sentenced a case of concealing and hiding criminal proceeds. The four defendants helped others transfer criminal funds by exchanging "U coins" for cash with the victim, profiting a total of 2,300 yuan. After the trial, the court of Guanling Autonomous County found that the actions of the four defendants constituted the crime of concealing and hiding criminal proceeds, and sentenced them to penalties ranging from seven months to one year and one month, along with fines.

ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York recently sentenced Long Island resident Eugene William Austin Jr. (also known as Hugh Austin) to 18 years in prison for charges including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, money laundering, and interstate transportation of stolen property.The court found that Austin conspired with his son Brandon Austin to falsely promise victims large cryptocurrency transactions, short-term high-return investments, and services to introduce high-net-worth investors to startups, while actually defrauding them to fund personal luxury expenses.Brandon Austin pleaded guilty in 2023 and was sentenced to 4 years in prison. The two caused over 20 victims to suffer cumulative losses exceeding $10 million. Eugene Austin's sentencing date is set for February 20, 2025, and he faces a maximum of 45 years in prison.

ChainCatcher news, according to Decrypt, the Federal Bureau of Prisons' inmate registration information shows that FTX co-founder and former CEO SBF has been transferred to the low-security federal correctional institution Terminal Island in Los Angeles, after previously being held in a notorious violent medium-security prison in California.An inmate told the Zoukis Consulting Group (a company that specializes in collecting and publishing information about various prisons): the food and location here are great, and noted that it is close to the water, with very few violent incidents.This is in stark contrast to the prison where SBF was previously held, known as "Victim Village," where SBF spent nearly two weeks after being transferred there from the Oklahoma transfer center by the Federal Bureau of Prisons earlier this month.

According to ChainCatcher news and reports from the Xiamen Procuratorate's official account, in September 2021, a man surnamed Chen met the victim, Hong, through a friend's introduction. At that time, Hong had a strong interest in virtual currency investment, and Chen had some knowledge in this area, so Hong entrusted Chen to assist with virtual currency investments, even carelessly sharing his account and login password with him.While helping a friend invest in futures, Chen suffered significant losses that left him overwhelmed with debt, leading him to develop malicious thoughts. At the end of September 2022, Chen fabricated a story about his account being disconnected to deceive Hong into providing various verification codes. He then successfully changed the account's login password and replaced the linked email with his own. Subsequently, Chen repeatedly claimed that the account was disconnected and used real-time verification codes to secretly transfer the virtual currency from Hong's account to his own. He quickly sold these virtual currencies, making a profit of over 1.6 million yuan, which he used entirely to repay his personal debts.The Huli District Procuratorate legally prosecuted Chen for theft. According to Article 264 of the Criminal Law of the People's Republic of China, theft of public or private property, with particularly large amounts or other particularly serious circumstances, is punishable by more than ten years of fixed-term imprisonment or life imprisonment, and may also involve fines or confiscation of property.After hearing the case, the court sentenced Chen to eleven years in prison for theft and imposed a fine.

ChainCatcher news, according to Coindesk, a Brazilian court has sentenced three main leaders of the cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme "Braiscompany" to a total of 171 years in prison. The mastermind of the scheme, Joel Ferreira de Sousa, was sentenced to 128 years, while the other two involved, Gessana Layane Silva and Victor Vironez, were sentenced to 27 years and 15 years, respectively.The scheme attracted approximately 20,000 investors and illegally raised about $190 million.

ChainCatcher news, according to Decrypt, the founder of the phishing-as-a-service (PhaaS) provider LabHost, Zak Coyn, has been sentenced to eight and a half years in prison. According to the UK Crown Prosecution Service, the 24-year-old gained $230,000 worth of cryptocurrency by designing and operating the website, which was laundered through multiple wallets and ultimately converted into cash by third parties before being transferred to his bank.It is estimated that thousands of criminals in 91 countries used LabHost to carry out scams, with the total number of victims exceeding one million.Previous news, police from multiple countries jointly cracked down on LabHost's phishing services.