Cryptocurrency Theft Ringleader Gets 47 Years in Prison

The U.S. Department of Justice announced that Remy Ra St. Felix, a Florida man, received a 47-year prison sentence for leading a violent criminal group that targeted cryptocurrency holders in a series of home invasions. This sentence is the longest ever for a case involving cryptocurrency-related crimes, marking a significant moment in the ongoing fight against digital asset-fueled criminal activity.

The investigation, which spanned several years and multiple states, uncovered that St. Felix and his co-conspirators used both SIM swapping and violent home invasions to extort cryptocurrency from victims. Between 2020 and 2023, the group assaulted, kidnapped, and terrorized 11 victims across four states, ultimately stealing over $3.5 million in cryptocurrency. St. Felix was convicted in June 2024, and his sentencing follows the conviction of 11 other men involved in the criminal operation.

Turning physical

The criminal enterprise initially started with SIM swapping schemes, led by St. Felix's associate, Jarod Gabriel Seemungal. By hijacking victims' phone numbers, the group gained access to cryptocurrency exchange accounts. However, in 2022, they escalated their efforts to physically confront victims, conducting violent home invasions. These invasions involved holding victims at gunpoint, binding them with plastic cable ties, and forcing them to transfer large sums of cryptocurrency under duress.

One notable incident occurred in September 2022, when St. Felix and his crew invaded homes in Delray Beach and Homestead, Florida. In one case, a man was abducted, beaten, and held hostage until he handed over access to his cryptocurrency. The group also invaded a home in Little Elm, Texas, in December 2022, where they tortured the occupants for hours, stealing valuables, including $150,000 in cryptocurrency.

The group's last major heist occurred in April 2023, when St. Felix and co-conspirator Elmer Ruben Castro attacked a couple in Durham, North Carolina. They violently assaulted the couple, forced them to log into their cryptocurrency accounts, and transferred over $150,000 in digital assets. Despite the group's attempts to launder the funds through decentralized exchanges and privacy-focused cryptocurrencies like Monero, law enforcement, working together with private blockchain intelligence firms, successfully tracked them down.

St. Felix's arrest came in July 2023, shortly before he planned another home invasion in Long Island, New York. His capture was the result of a joint effort involving the FBI and state law enforcement, who used a combination of surveillance footage, phone records, and blockchain tracking to dismantle the group.

St. Felix's 47-year sentence reflects the severity of the crimes, which U.S. law enforcement officials have labeled as one of the worst cryptocurrency extortion crime sprees in U.S. history.

Other key figures in the operation, including Seemungal, received lengthy prison terms, with Seemungal sentenced to 20 years and ordered to pay over $4 million in restitution. Co-conspirators, such as Castro, are set to be sentenced later in 2024, with additional sentences ranging from five to 25 years for various participants in the scheme.

A worrying trend

This case highlights the growing intersection of physical violence and digital financial crime, particularly as criminals seek to exploit the anonymity and value of cryptocurrencies. Unfortunately, these physical attacks continue, following an escalating trajectory, with the latest high-profile incident reported by Nick Drakon, the founder of Revelo Intel, who was forced at gunpoint to log into a number of crypto accounts and transfer funds out.