Protection attorneys have requested a decide to condemn the particular person liable for serving to put up a faux message saying regulatory approval of Bitcoin exchange-traded funds to roughly a yr in jail, countering prosecutors’ request for a two-year sentence.
In a Could 13 submitting within the US District Courtroom for the District of Columbia, Eric Council Jr.’s authorized staff requested that he be sentenced to no multiple yr and sooner or later in jail following his responsible plea.
Council was a part of a bunch that took management of the US Securities and Trade Fee’s (SEC’s) X account in 2024 by way of a SIM swap assault, posting a message that steered the regulator had authorized spot Bitcoin (BTC) exchange-traded fund listings for the primary time.
“A sentence of twelve months and sooner or later serves the ends of justice,” mentioned the Could 13 submitting. “It sufficiently punishes the defendant for his function on this case. It additionally promotes respect for the legislation and deters future felony conduct.”
Council initially pleaded not responsible to the fees, however modified his plea to responsible in February on one rely of conspiracy to commit aggravated id theft and entry gadget fraud. The decide overseeing the case, Amy Berman Jackson, additionally ordered prosecutors to “determine the felony and level to the place that info may be discovered within the document” by Could 13.
Jail sentence between 1 and a couple of years?
The SEC hacker is scheduled to be sentenced on Could 16. Prosecutors requested the decide to impose a two-year sentence on Council, saying he “profited by way of a complicated fraud scheme.” Courtroom filings showed he earned roughly $50,000 by way of comparable SIM swap assaults.
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Although Council’s case was doubtless winding down along with his upcoming sentencing listening to, the DC courtroom district might quickly be underneath new management, doubtlessly affecting the prosecution of crypto-related instances. On Could 8, US President Donald Trump introduced that Fox Information host Jeanine Pirro would develop into the interim US lawyer for the District of Columbia.
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