Two brothers who attended one of America’s most elite universities have been charged with stealing $25 million in cryptocurrencies in 12 seconds. Anton Peraire-Bueno, 24, and James Peraire-Bueno, 28, are charged with wire fraud and money laundering. The US Department of Justice stated that the suspected robbery is the first of its kind.
The Peraire-Bueno brothers stole $25 million in Ethereum cryptocurrency
Prosecutors further allege that the duo, who were supposedly educated at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), committed the crime in April 2023.
“The Peraire-Bueno brothers stole $25 million in Ethereum cryptocurrency through a technologically sophisticated, cutting-edge scheme they plotted for months and executed in seconds,” said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco.
She also stated that Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agents were instrumental in exposing the “first-of-its-kind wire fraud and money laundering scheme”.
Prosecutors claim the two used highly specialized skills gained at “one of the most prestigious universities in the world” to exploit Ethereum’s process for validating transactions.
According to the accusations, the brothers studied mathematics and computer science and attended MIT.
“The defendants’ scheme calls the very integrity of the blockchain into question,” US Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement on Wednesday, referring to the public ledger that records crypto payments.
The brothers allegedly stole from Ethereum traders by acquiring unauthorized access to pending private transactions and then modifying the transactions to obtain their victims’ cryptocurrency.
This is the first time such a “novel” form of fraud has been prosecuted
The operation, dubbed “the Exploit” by investigators, took only a few seconds to complete.
When challenged by an Ethereum representative, officials allege the brothers refused to refund the assets and attempted to launder and hide their stolen wealth.
Prosecutors point out that this is the first time such a “novel” form of fraud has been prosecuted. If proven guilty, they each risk more than 20 years in prison.