U.S. DOJ Pursues North Korea's Illicit Money Machine, Seizes More Crypto

The U.S. Department of Justice announced several criminal convictions and the seizure of an additional $15 million in Tether's USDT linked to North Korean crypto heists, specifically those tied to the group Advanced Persistent Threat 38 (APT38), allegedly connected to the North Korean military. The convictions involved individuals who aided North Korea by securing U.S. jobs for fraudulent IT workers using stolen identities to mask their origin while collecting paychecks from U.S. businesses. The FBI noted this highlights the North Korean government's ongoing efforts to evade sanctions and fund its regime and weapons programs. Separately, authorities also announced a new Scam Center Strike Force targeting 'pig-butchering' scams, seizing $80 million in stolen funds. The article also notes ongoing discussions regarding how these seized crypto funds will be managed, potentially going into strategic reserves President Donald Trump has sought to establish for forfeited digital assets.

(Source：CoinDesk)