U.S. Seeks Forfeiture of $25 Million in Crypto Tied to Global Scams

The case centers on South Dakota investor Wenner, who allegedly used his company Benaiah to solicit money from the public and carry out a cryptocurrency investment fraud totaling as much as $20 million. The Justice Department’s and a federal grand jury’s active involvement underscores the US government’s enforcement push on virtual-asset regulation and money laundering. It also serves as a warning to investors about emerging forms of Ponzi schemes.

A US federal grand jury has formally indicted Wenner, 43. He pleaded not guilty to all charges during a federal court appearance on July 10, 2026, and has been released on bail. His trial is scheduled to begin on September 15, 2026. If convicted of the alleged wire fraud, money laundering and bank fraud, he could face up to 30 years in prison and substantial fines.

As cross-border online fraud grows more sophisticated, cryptocurrencies have become a new conduit for illicit money laundering because of their high degree of anonymity. Interpol has stepped up enforcement to prevent criminal groups from using decentralized finance to legitimize illicit proceeds. The scale and cross-border reach of such networks have made stemming virtual-asset flows a major challenge for global financial-security and law-enforcement authorities.

Interpol said in July 2026 that Operation First Light 2026 had dismantled a money-laundering network linked to romance scams. Thai police arrested two suspects whose cryptocurrency wallets received more than $122 million over 10 months. The coordinated global operation resulted in 5,811 arrests and the seizure of $293 million in illicit assets.

Maximilien de Hoop Cartier, a French resident and descendant of the Cartier jewelry family, operated an unregistered over-the-counter cryptocurrency exchange from at least 2018. He used more than a dozen U.S. bank accounts, along with fraudulent contracts and invoices, to conceal the source of funds. He converted proceeds from drug trafficking and other crimes into fiat currency and transferred the money to Colombia, underscoring the United States’ ability to prosecute cross-border money-laundering networks.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York said Cartier pleaded guilty on October 23, 2025, to operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business and conspiring to commit bank fraud. Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil sentenced him to eight years in prison on April 28, 2026. The scheme laundered more than $470 million, and Cartier must also forfeit $2,362,160.62 in commissions and funds held in related shell-company accounts.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia established the Scam Center Strike Force in November 2025, working with the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, the FBI, the Secret Service and the IRS Criminal Investigation division. The task force targets fake-investment and “pig-butchering” scams run in Southeast Asia by Chinese transnational criminal organizations. Tracing crypto assets is crucial to disrupting money laundering and compensating U.S. victims.

The Justice Department said on February 26, 2026, that the task force had frozen, seized or forfeited more than $578 million in cryptocurrency in roughly three months. It plans to pursue the assets through court proceedings and return as much as possible to victims. By April 23, the value of restrained assets had risen to $701,962,392.15. Authorities also charged two Chinese nationals, seized 503 scam websites and took control of a Telegram recruitment channel.