22-year-old pleads guilty to laundering money for $263 million crypto ring

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) today announced that a key member of a $263 million social engineering scam ring has officially pleaded guilty.

At a hearing before Federal Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly, defendant Evan Tangeman, 22 years old, residing in California, admitted to participating in a criminal conspiracy under the RICO Act by laundering more than $3.5 million for the ring. Tangeman is the ninth defendant to plead guilty in this investigation.

The scam ring operated from October 2023 to May 2025, originating from a group of friends who met through online gaming platforms, spanning California, Connecticut, New York, Florida, and several other countries. The group seized about 4,100 BTC, equivalent to $263 million at the time of the crime—this amount of Bitcoin is currently worth about $371 million.

The criminal organization consisted of hackers, coordinators, target identifiers, a group responsible for conducting scam calls, and a team that broke into homes to steal hardware wallets. They used stolen databases to identify potential victims. Hackers attacked websites and servers to steal crypto-related data, while the data screening team identified high-value targets.

According to the indictment:

“Callers would contact victims, impersonate cybersecurity support, and convince them that their accounts were under attack, thereby leading the victims to follow their instructions.”

The stolen crypto was spent on luxury services worth millions of dollars, including nightclubs, designer handbags, watches, cars, rental villas, private jet charters, and even private security teams.

Tangeman assisted the group by using cash-out services to convert stolen crypto into fiat currency, then used the money to rent real estate. He also used fake identities in rental contracts to conceal the true owner’s identity. Sentencing for Tangeman is scheduled for April 24, 2026.

Along with Tangeman’s guilty plea, the court also unsealed a second superseding indictment, charging three additional recently arrested individuals: Nicholas Dellecave, Mustafa Ibrahim, and Danish Zulfiqar.

Thach Sanh