Key Takeaways
- Heather Morgan has been sentenced to 18 months in prison.
- The self-proclaimed “Crocodile of Wall Street” helped launder millions of dollars worth of stolen Bitcoin from the Bitfinex exchange.
- Ilya Lichtenstein, her husband, who carried out the hack and theft, was sentenced to five years.
Heather Morgan, also known by her rapper alias “Razzlekhan,” has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for her role in laundering almost 120,000 Bitcoin from the Bitfinex crypto exchange.
Razzlekhan, who previously gained an audience as an influencer, pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges last year.
Heather Morgan’s Role in Bitfinex Theft
The self-proclaimed “Crocodile of Wall Street” and her husband, Ilya Lichtenstein, were arrested in 2022 after authorities managed to track the massive laundering operation.
Lichtenstein hacked the Bitfinex exchange in 2016 and transferred 119,754 Bitcoins, worth $71 million, to his wallet. At today’s price, the stolen Bitcoin would be worth over $10 billion.
He was sentenced to five years in prison last week after pleading guilty to carrying out the theft.
Morgan claimed she was not aware of the Bitfinex exchange theft taking place until after it had happened. She pleaded guilty to just one count of conspiracy.
However, prosecutors claimed Morgan “participated with Lichtenstein in efforts to conceal and obscure the source of the funds while knowing and understanding that the funds were the result of some unspecified unlawful and fraudulent activity.”
Morgan helped set up multiple financial accounts, including virtual currency exchanges, to help launder the funds. She also used her own accounts.
In an attempt to hide the funds, the couple converted some of the Bitcoin into fiat currency in Ukrainian and Russian bank accounts.
The couple managed to launder one-fifth of Lichtenstein’s total theft.
Appeal For Lighter Sentencing
Defense attorneys pushed the court for a “time served” sentence last month, arguing that Morgan should face no extra prison time.
“Ms. Morgan has proven herself worthy of a second chance, and we respectfully ask this Court to give her that chance by imposing a sentence of time served,” Morgan’s lawyers said in court on Oct. 31.
The lawyers claimed Morgan had faced “difficult conditions” in her week-long pretrial incarceration, citing her getting COVID-19 and having to recover from surgery.
However, U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly felt it was important Morgan did prison time to deter others from similar future crimes.
Just hours after being sentenced to jail time, Morgan jumped straight back into her “Razzlekhan” persona to address her followers on X.
“I’m sorry I have been gone for a little while. For the last three years, I’ve been battling a Fed case, and I like to listen to my lawyers,” Morgan said to the camera. “Well, guess what, it’s over. I’m very excited I will soon be telling my story, sharing my thoughts, and telling you about the other creative endeavors I’ve been working on.”
“Razzle Dazzle,” she concluded.
Morgan will begin her 18-month sentence around the end of January.
Kurt Robson is a London-based reporter at CCN, specialising in the fast-moving worlds of crypto and emerging technology. He began his career covering local news in Cornwall after graduating from Falmouth University with First Class Honours in Journalism. There, he cut his teeth on everything from council meetings to missing swans.
He quickly rose through the ranks to become a frontline journalist at several of the UK’s leading national newspapers. Over the years, he has interviewed musicians and celebrities, reported from courtrooms and crime scenes, and secured multiple front-page exclusives.
Following the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kurt shifted his focus to technology journalism—just ahead of the AI boom. With a natural curiosity and a trained eye for emerging trends, he has found a new rhythm in reporting on innovation.
At CCN, Kurt's work focuses on the cutting edge of crypto, blockchain, AI, and the evolving digital world. Drawing on his background in people-first reporting and his deep interest in disruptive tech, Kurt delivers stories that are insightful, entertaining, and human-centric.
