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Biggest Heist Ever is Netflix's new documentary, which tells the story of Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan, who are known to have committed one of the biggest crypto crimes in American history. In 2016, the the couple was responsible for stealing bitcoins for a worth of $72 million, from a Hong Kong-based crypto exchange ecosystem known as Bitfinex.
This major heist sent shockwaves across the cryptocurrency market, and the value of Bitcoin dropped by 20% just within hours. Over the years, the couple's assets increased to a sum of $4.5 billion, which is estimated to be $10.8 billion in today's Bitcoin market. However, it was only in February 2022 that the US federal investigators could finally detect and reveal the couple's span of crimes.
Netflix's Biggest Heist Ever will delve deep into more unnoticed angles on Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan's crypto heist. The documentary will be released on December 6, 2024.
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What is the story of Biggest Heist Ever subjects Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan
Ilya Lichtenstein was a tech entrepreneur from Glenview, Illinois, who was recognized by his pen name, Dutch. Professionally, Lichtenstein worked as a coder, and business investor interested in fintech. He was a psychology student, who graduated with a bachelor's degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Lichtenstein had contributed to a start-up named MixRank, which is used to provide updated datasets of people, companies, and other businesses, to keep track of competitive websites. However, Lichtenstein later left the company at the end of 2016. From the beginning, he had an avid interest in automation, and blockchain technology, which he shared on his social media.
His partner Heather Morgan, shared as much interest in tech as much as him. Hailing from California, Morgan was a graduate in economics and international relations, who used to work in Silicon Valley at a startup called Tamatem. The pair met each other at a tech conference, and eventually moved together, shifting to New York.
However, apart from tech, Heather had an interest in music, sharing a passion for rap. Her love for writing involved her in founding a copywriting and marketing agency, all the while contributing articles to Inc. and Forbes. On the Internet, Morgan was known as a rapper named Razzlekhan and began posting goofy videos on YouTube with rap background music. Razzlekhan found a unique way to blend crypto with modern hip-hop, but her videos did not get wider attention, until the Heist.
Biggest Heist Ever documents the couple's journey of committing one of the biggest Crypto Frauds in American history
Biggest Heist Ever, the new Netflix documentary, embarks on a mission to delve deep into all the reasons that could've inspired the heist. As reported by the Office of Public Affairs, US Department of Justice, Liechtenstein and Morgan had stolen a total of 119,754 bitcoins from Bitfinex, with over 2,000 unauthorized transactions.
The transactions were then transferred to a digital wallet, which Lichtenstein had access to, where over 25,000 bitcoins were transferred over the next five years. The remaining bitcoins stayed in the digital wallet, the couple had illegally used at the time of hacking. Law enforcement was able to track the unusual money transfer from that account. After realizing the fraud, they obtained the password and seized the account.
Biggest Heist Ever also documents how the couple used the funds to invest more into NFT, Gold, and Uber rides. Though, the couple had extracted millions of dollars from the account, almost 80% of the stolen assets were available in the account, by the time it was detected and seized.
The couple was presented before the jury, and US Attorney Matthew M. Graves from the District of Columbia commented on the fraud. He said:
“Cryptocurrency and the virtual currency exchanges trading in it comprise an expanding part of the US financial system, but digital currency heists executed through complex money laundering schemes could undermine confidence in cryptocurrency."
He further added, “The Department of Justice and our office stand ready to confront these threats by using 21st-century investigative techniques to recover the stolen funds and to hold the perpetrators accountable.”
It was in August 2023 when Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan were found guilty of having been involved in money laundering. Lichtenstein admitted to carrying out the hack, while Morgan confessed to initiating a conspiracy to defraud the nation. In November 2024, Morgan was sent to 18 months in prison, while Lichtenstein received 60 months of imprisonment.
Netflix's Biggest Heist Ever, while delving deep into the past of the hackers found that Lichtenstein's father, Eugen was involved in the hacking of the First National Bank of Indiana. Eugene, who went by the pseudonym of Deuce, had earlier hacked a Secret Service Computer. In 2005, Deuce collaborated with former black hat named Brett Johnson, to hack the bank.
He was questioned by officials from the Secret Service and agreed to have committed the crimes. He then worked with the Secret Service as an informant to make up for the crimes. After getting released, Eugene Lichtenstein went on to become a Chicago real estate agent.
Johnson commented that Ilya Lichtenstein was partly influenced by his father towards carrying out the nationwide crypto fraud. Brett Johnson personally narrates his encounter with Eugene in Biggest Heist Ever.
Biggest Heist Ever is available for streaming on Netflix.
