Ilya Lichtenstein, who pleaded guilty over his role in the 2016 Bitfinex cryptocurrency exchange hack, has been released from prison after serving about 14 months of a five-year sentence imposed in November 2024.
In a post on X, Lichtenstein attributed his early release to the First Step Act, a criminal justice reform law signed by then-President Donald Trump in 2018 that revised sentencing and prison policies. “Thanks to President [Donald] Trump’s First Step Act, I have been released from prison early,” he wrote, adding that he remains committed to contributing positively to cybersecurity.
Lichtenstein thanked supporters and criticized his detractors, writing that he looks forward to proving his “haters” wrong while reiterating his plans to remain active in cybersecurity.
Reaction on X was split. Some users congratulated Lichtenstein, while others questioned the outcome. An onchain investigator known as Specter posted a meme suggesting that “crime is legal,” while another user, CB32, asked, “how much did you pay?” A user going by Cryptoenthusiast wrote, “Where’s the 120,000 stolen from Bitfinex?”
Lichtenstein and his wife, rapper Heather “Razzlekhan” Morgan, were arrested in February 2022. Morgan was sentenced to 18 months in prison and was released in October 2024 after serving roughly eight months.
The Bitfinex hack in August 2016 resulted in the theft of 119,754 BTC, worth about $71 million at the time and more than $10 billion at current prices. Authorities later recovered roughly 94,000 BTC. In January 2025, U.S. prosecutors moved for the recovered bitcoin to be returned to Bitfinex.
Lichtenstein pleaded guilty to money laundering conspiracy and admitted involvement in the theft of crypto assets, while asserting that Morgan did not participate in the crime. According to a report by blockchain analytics firm TRM, he converted about 25,000 BTC into other cryptocurrencies and physical gold coins, most of which were ultimately recovered by the U.S. government.
Lichtenstein’s release comes amid broader scrutiny of President Trump’s use of executive clemency in crypto-related cases, although Lichtenstein himself did not receive a pardon. Between January and October, Trump pardoned Silk Road founder Ross Ulbricht; Arthur Hayes and three other BitMEX cofounders convicted of Bank Secrecy Act violations; and Binance founder Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, who had pleaded guilty to enabling money laundering at the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange.