Ringleader pleads guilty to scheme to steal millions in cryptocurrency

Sept. 10, 2026, 9:19 a.m. ET

A 22-year-old man has pleaded guilty in a scheme to steal hundreds of millions of dollars in cryptocurrency as ringleader of a group of over a dozen people who went on a lavish spending spree with the money.

Malone Lam, also known online as “Anne Hathaway,” “$$$" or “King Greavy,” is a Miami resident who is a citizen of Singapore. He pleaded guilty to one count of participating in a conspiracy under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia announced on Sept. 8.

According to prosecutors, Lam was a leader of a group of at least 16 other people from California, Connecticut, New York, Florida and abroad who connected primarily through online gaming platforms. The group used "social engineering," or tricking someone into revealing sensitive information such as passwords, to steal the cryptocurrency, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said in an indictment that the group used the millions to purchase nightclub services that cost up to $500,000 per evening; luxury handbags worth tens of thousands of dollars that they gave away at nightclub parties; watches worth $100,000 to $500,000; luxury clothing; five rental homes in Los Angeles, the Hamptons and Miami; private jet rentals; private security guards; and a fleet of cars ranging in value from $100,000 to $3.8 million.