Money launderer pleads guilty to RICO charges

The US Department of Justice (DoJ) has arrested another member of a social engineering scam that has stolen $263 million over the past few years.

Evan Tangeman pled guilty to participating in a racketeer-influenced and corrupt organization (RICO) that helped steal hundreds of millions of dollars in crypto assets through a social engineering scheme, according to U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro.

Related: Huge sum of $18.5 million seized in Dubai; suspect Danny, central figure in virtual currency crime, arrested

9th member of pig slaughter scam pleads guilty

The 22-year-old, from Newport Beach, California, pleaded guilty on Monday, December 8, 2025, before U.S. District Judge Colleen Koller Kotelly. As a result, the Justice Department has so far detained nine members of the pig slaughtering scheme, which began around October 2023 and ended in May 2025.

Mr. Tangeman is therefore charged with aiding and abetting the laundering of at least $3.5 million in corporate funds and is awaiting sentencing on April 24, 2026. According to the statement, Mr. Tangeman was renting expensive homes in Los Angeles and Miami to other members, ranging from $40,000 to $80,000 a month.

In one instance, Tangeman helped Malone Lamb launder approximately $3 million by exchanging virtual currency for fiat currency. Meanwhile, the court also announced three additional defendants charged with RICO conspiracy.

Among the new defendants named in the second superseding indictment were Nicholas Derekav, Mustafa Ibrahim and Denmark’s Zulfiqar. On November 18, 2025, Kunal Mehta pleaded guilty to helping the same gang launder $25 million in money, ostensibly charging a 10% fee to convert stolen crypto assets into fiat currency.

ZachXBT reveals arrest of another gang member

At the center of this investigation is on-chain detective ZachXBT. The popular blockchain investigator helped law enforcement track down more than 4,000 Bitcoins (BTC) worth approximately $243 million that were stolen from a single victim in 2024.

Earlier on Tuesday, ZachXBT announced that Zulfiqar had been arrested and more than $18 million had been seized by law enforcement. According to ZachXBT, Danny has also been involved in Kroll SIM Swap since August 2023, stealing over $300 million after compromising the PII of BlockFi, Genesis, and FTX creditors.

Positive signs for the cryptocurrency industry

The indictment of nine gang members is a major step forward for the crypto industry as a whole. As digital assets become mainstream adoption by institutional investors and individual traders, the arrests ensure that cryptocurrencies demand maximum transparency as calls for more privacy-focused transactions grow.

Additionally, advanced research techniques are being employed by various companies led by Chainalysis to secure trillions of dollars in the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem.

Related: Hackers earn $3.1 million by exploiting GANA payments on BSC Chain