Singaporean National Pleads Guilty to $245M Crypto Theft Conspiracy

Malone Lam, a Singaporean national, has pleaded guilty to participating in a racketeering conspiracy that US prosecutors say used social engineering and home break-ins to steal and launder more than $245 million in cryptocurrency. The operation was formed through connections on online gaming platforms and operated from at least October 2023 through May 2025.

The plea establishes criminal responsibility nearly two years after Lam was charged over the theft of over 4,100 Bitcoin, worth over $230 at the time, from a Washington, DC resident. Initially, prosecutors accused Lam and Jeandiel Serrano of fraudulently obtaining more than 4,100 Bitcoin from a single victim on August 18, 2024.

Lam allegedly organized the international operation, identified prospective victims, and coordinated other conspirators. The attackers posed as Google support staff to compromise the victim's accounts before impersonating Gemini support to persuade the victim to reset two-factor authentication and use screen-sharing software that exposed private keys.