Two brothers, Anton Peraire-Bueno, 24, and James Peraire-Bueno, 28, both educated at the renowned Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), stand accused of masterminding a groundbreaking cryptocurrency theft.
They allegedly orchestrated the heist, netting $25 million in Ethereum within a mere 12 seconds. This technologically advanced scheme, described by Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco as unprecedented, involved exploiting Ethereum’s transaction validation process using specialized skills acquired during their studies.
The brothers, charged with wire fraud and money laundering, allegedly manipulated pending private transactions to siphon cryptocurrency from unsuspecting traders. Termed “the Exploit” by investigators, the process was executed swiftly, calling into question the integrity of the blockchain.
Despite facing potential sentences exceeding 20 years, the brothers purportedly refused to return the stolen funds when confronted, instead opting to launder and conceal their ill-gotten gains. This marks the first instance of such a sophisticated form of fraud resulting in criminal charges.
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