The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina seized more than $61 million in Tether (USDT) linked to money laundering from crypto “pig butchering” investment scams.
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Why it matters:
- Victims of pig butchering scams lose funds to fraudulent platforms showing fake returns, then face demands for “taxes” or “fees” to withdraw. This is a cycle designed to repeatedly extract money.
- The $61 million seizure ranks among the largest single USDT confiscations tied to romance-based crypto fraud in U.S. history.
- The case signals direct DOJ and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) coordination with Tether to freeze and transfer illicit stablecoin holdings.
The details:
- The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina announced the seizure, with the DOJ and HSI leading the operation.
- Investigators traced the USDT to wallet addresses linked to money laundering tied to crypto investment fraud.
- Pig butchering scams involve criminals building fake romantic relationships online before steering victims toward fraudulent trading platforms.
- Tether assisted the DOJ and HSI in facilitating the transfer of the $61 million in seized assets.
The big picture:
- Pig butchering scams generated billions in global losses in recent years, with U.S. authorities accelerating seizures as stablecoins become the preferred settlement layer for organized fraud networks.
- The case adds to the DOJ’s growing track record of recovering crypto assets linked to transnational fraud.
