Judge Stops Release of Bitfinex Hack Laundering Suspects

Chief Judge Beryl Howell, of the U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C., stayed an earlier order by a New York magistrate judge to release Ilya “Dutch” Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan on bail. The two were arrested Tuesday by federal officials on charges stemming from a 2016 hack of the Bitfinex cryptocurrency exchange. The U.S. Department of Justice also said officials seized 94,000 BTC, worth over $3.5 billion at today’s prices.