Malone Lam pleads guilty to $245M Bitcoin theft and lavish spending

Malone Lam, a 22-year-old Singaporean national living in Miami, pleaded guilty to participating in a RICO conspiracy that netted over $245 million in stolen Bitcoin. The plea, entered in a US District Court in Washington, D.C., marks the first time federal prosecutors have applied racketeering laws to a Bitcoin-related crime. The scheme ran from October 2023 to May 2025 and involved the theft of more than 4,100 BTC. One individual victim alone lost 4,100 BTC in a single incident in August 2024, making it one of the largest single-victim crypto heists ever recorded. Private jets, exotic cars, and $500K nightclub tabs Lam’s spending spree included exotic cars priced up to $3.8 million each, private jet charters, and nightclub tabs that reportedly reached $500,000 in a single evening. The operation wasn’t a solo act. At least 12 co-defendants have been identified across multiple US states and international locations. Lam and his associates used social engineering tactics and residential break-ins to access victims’ crypto holdings. The playbook relied heavily on impersonation, deceiving targets into revealing sensitive information or granting access to their wallets and exchange accou...