Crypto thief released early thanks to Trump's First Step Act

• Ilya Lichtenstein, mastermind of the 2016 Bitfinex hack, was released early under the First Step Act
• He and wife Heather “Razzlekhan” Morgan stole 120,000 bitcoin, laundered funds, and were arrested in 2022
• Both credited President Trump’s legislation for their early release, celebrating reunion after years apart

Ilya Lichtenstein, the hacker who was serving prison time for breaking into crypto exchange Bitfinex and stealing millions of dollars' worth of bitcoin, was released from jail early. In a short tweet posted on X, Lichtenstein thanked US President Donald Trump for his early release:

“Thanks to President Trump’s First Step Act, I have been released from prison early. I remain committed to making a positive impact in cybersecurity as soon as I can,” Lichtenstein said. “To the supporters, thank you for everything. To the haters, I look forward to proving you wrong.”

Lichtenstein is a Russian-born US citizen who was ...