Venezuelan Man Charged in Alleged $1B Crypto Money Laundering Scheme Faces 20 Years in Prison

Federal prosecutors have charged a Venezuelan national for allegedly laundering around one billion dollars using cryptocurrency wallets and shell companies. This case is deemed one of the largest money-laundering operations ever prosecuted by the Justice Department.

Key Takeaways

Jorge Figueira is accused of laundering around $1 billion through cryptocurrencies.
His operation allegedly masked transactions to facilitate criminal activities.
The network primarily utilized multiple bank accounts, exchange accounts, and shell companies.
A recent increase in federal enforcement actions target crypto-related money laundering activities.
The U.S. retains seized Bitcoin as part of its Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.

Venezuelan Man Charged in Alleged $1B Crypto Money Laundering Scheme Faces 20 Years in Prison

Jorge Figueira, 59, could face a 20-year prison sentence if found guilty of conspiracy to launder money. Authorities claim his network moved illicit funds across various continents while actively hiding transactions from law enforcement agencies.

The complaint, filed in Virginia’s Eastern District, accuses Figueira of leading a complex laundering system. This operation converted cash into cryptocurrency, moved digital assets through numerous wallets, and then exchanged them back into dollars before sending the funds to various high-risk jurisdictions such as Colombia, China, Panama, and Mexico.

Prosecutors report that between 2018 and now, over one billion dollars traveled through identified crypto wallets and financial accounts, with most of the incoming funds sourced from cryptocurrency trading platforms.

Extensive Network Allegedly Operating Across Borders

According to court documents, Figueira supposedly recruited subordinates to carry out countless transfers designed to hide the origins and endpoints of the funds.

Federal investigators reveal that the operation utilized various bank accounts, cryptocurrency exchange accounts, private digital wallets, and shell companies to facilitate a significant volume of illicit money entering and exiting the United States.

Reid Davis, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI's Washington Field Office Criminal Division, stated that the bureau has identified around $1 billion in cryptocurrency traversing wallets that were part of Figueira’s money laundering scheme.

This network purportedly provided services to individuals and businesses globally while engaging in numerous transactions aimed at obscuring the true nature of the funds, thus potentially enabling criminal activities across various nations.

U.S. Attorney Lindsey Halligan highlighted the extensive nature of the alleged offenses, asserting that "money laundering at this scale allows transnational criminal organizations to function, expand, and cause genuine harm."

“Those involved in moving illicit funds on this magnitude should anticipate detection, disruption, and being held accountable under federal law,” she cautioned.

Federal Enforcement Targets Crypto Crime Networks Nationwide

Figueira's charges come at a time of heightened federal enforcement against cryptocurrency-related money laundering activities across the country.

Earlier in the week, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg urged New York legislators to make unlicensed crypto operations illegal, labeling them as a "50 billion dollar criminal economy."

Federal data highlights the extent of crypto-related crime, with the FBI reporting nearly 11,000 complaints related to crypto ATMs in 2024, amounting to over $246 million in total losses.

In a separate analysis, blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis found that illicit crypto addresses received a staggering $154 billion in 2025, marking a significant rise compared to previous years.

Crypto Money Laundering - Chainalysis Chart

Recent legal actions have targeted various criminal activities, illustrating the breadth of the problem.

On Thursday, Brian Garry Sewell, a resident of Utah, was sentenced to three years in prison for a fraudulent scheme involving $2.9 million and simultaneously running an unlicensed cash-to-crypto business that converted over $5.4 million in cash.

In the previous month, another case emerged when a 23-year-old Brooklyn resident, Ronald Spektor, was charged with stealing around $16 million from approximately 100 Coinbase users through alleged phishing tactics that capitalized on panic rather than technical hacks.

As the government continues to address these growing concerns, it has initiated the Strategic Bitcoin Reserve, which formalizes the retention of seized cryptocurrencies, as opposed to auctioning them off. This was one of the moves made by Donald Trump upon taking office, who even signed an executive order in support of this reserve.

However, recent developments indicated that the U.S. Department of Justice seemingly sold 57 Bitcoin seized from the Samourai Wallet developers. However, White House crypto advisor Patrick Witt confirmed that the Bitcoin forfeited in that case has not been liquidated and will remain in the reserve, as detailed in the executive order. Current federal holdings are estimated at 328,372 BTC, valued at over $31 billion.

At this juncture, it's essential to note that a criminal complaint is simply an allegation, and Figueira is assumed innocent until proven guilty. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Catherine Rosenberg, who will consider sentencing guidelines and statutory factors if a conviction is reached.