2023-07-22 00:51:15
The United States Department of Justice (DoJ) has announced that it will double the staff of its crypto crime team created in 2021. The unit will increase its number of acting prosecutors and have a new leader.
On July 20, the DoJ public statements made by Principal Deputy Attorney General Nicole Argentieri at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. In his speech, Argentieri announced the merger of two DoJ teams: the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS) and the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET).
After joining CCIPS, NCET will continue its activities to investigate and prosecute criminal offenses related to the misuse of cryptocurrencies. Argentieri called NCET a “hugely successful startup” and stressed that merging with a larger structure will provide it with additional new resources.
The number of criminal division attorneys available to work on cryptocurrency criminal matters will “more than double,” as any CCIPS attorney might potentially be assigned to work on an NCET case. The NCET will also have access to cybercrime and intellectual property.
The agency will also have a new acting director. Argentieri thanked the inaugural Director of NCET, Eun Young Choi, for her work and appointed Claudia Quiroz, the new head of the team. Quiroz, a former assistant prosecutor for the Northern District of California, has been deputy director of NCET since its inception.
An immediate task for the new “turbo-charged” unit will be to combat ransomware crime. NCET will focus on tracking criminals through their cryptocurrency payments, freezing or seizing them “before they go to Russia and other ransomware hotspots.”
NCET went live in 2021 as part of the DoJ’s Cryptocurrency Control Framework. In May 2023, former Director Choi stated that the department was focused on thefts and hacks related to decentralized finance and “particularly chain bridges.”
Disclaimer: The information and/or opinions expressed in this article do not necessarily represent the views or editorial line of Cointelegraph. The information presented here should not be taken as financial advice or investment recommendation. All investment and commercial movement involve risks and it is the responsibility of each person to do their due research before making an investment decision.
Investments in crypto assets are not regulated. They may not be suitable for retail investors and the entire amount invested may be lost. The services or products offered are not directed or accessible to investors in Spain.
1690011965
#Department #Justice #double #cryptocurrency #team #focus #ransomware #attacks
