Ohio Man Steals Over 712 BTC From IRS, Faces 40 Years in Prison

Per the report, Gary James Harmon pleaded guilty on January 6 to stealing more than 712 bitcoin (BTC)  from the International Revenue Service (IRS), valued at approximately $4.8 million at the time.

As part of his plea, Gary Harmon also agreed to forfeit cryptocurrencies and other properties derived from the fraudulently taken proceeds, including more than 647.41 Bitcoin (BTC), 2.14 Ethereum (ETH), and 17,404,400.64 Dogecoin (DOGE). Due to the increase in market prices, the total value of these forfeitable properties exceeds $12 million.

These crypto assets were initially seized by the law enforcement agency and subject to forfeiture in a pending criminal case about his brother, Larry Harmon, the now-convicted money launderer. 

Larry Harmon, the operator of the darknet-based cryptocurrency mixer Helix, was arrested in February 2020 for aiding customers of the platform to launder over 350,000 units of BTC worth over $300 million at the time of the transactions. 

Whereas the law enforcement seized various assets, including a cryptocurrency storage device containing Larry Harmon’s illegal proceeds gotten from Helix, they were initially unable to recover the bitcoin assets stored on the hardware device due to the enabled security features.

The press release further revealed that the defendant Gary Harmon utilized his brother’s credentials to recreate the bitcoin wallets contained in Larry’s seized device. Then, he moved out over 712 bitcoin, valued at roughly $4.8 million at the time, to his wallets. “Gary Harmon further laundered the proceeds through two online bitcoin mixer services before using the laundered bitcoins to finance large purchases and other expenditures,” part of the announcement read. 

In consequence, the 31-year-old man from Cleveland, Ohio pleaded guilty to two punishable crimes including wire fraud and obstruction of justice on Friday. Accordingly, U.S. District Court Chief Judge Howell has scheduled a sentencing hearing for March 17, 2023. 

While the wire fraud charge carries a statutory maximum sentence of up to 20 years in prison, it is said that the obstruction of justice charge carries a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.

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