2020-8-3 17:16 |
The 17-year old Twitter-hack mastermind holds over $3 million in BTC value with only $725,000 set for bail.
In a bizarre moment last month, Twitter faced a massive hack that over 30 celebrity and business accounts hacked with the hackers gaining nearly $117,000 in a Bitcoin giveaway scam. Authorities identified 17-year old Graham Ivan Clark as the mastermind of the hack, and after a court hearing, bail was set at $725,000 on Saturday, but recent reports show the teen can afford to pay it.
In a report first published by Tampa Bay Times, Graham holds over $3.39 million in Bitcoin (BTC) at current prices (about 300 BTC), which would be sufficient to post bail. However, the prosecutors were calling out for a $1 million bond for each of his 30 charges before the court. Claiming the BTC must have been obtained illegally due to his conduct in the Twitter hack.
Clark’s attorney, David Weisbrod, had a different view on the legitimacy of the BTC, claiming that the court in a separate case earlier retuned the 300 BTC to Clark after seizing $15,000 in cash and over 400 BTC. Weisbrod believes the action of the court giving back the coins makes them legitimate. He said,
“I can think of no greater indication of legitimacy than law enforcement giving the money back.”
However, there lingers a loophole on why the court withheld some of the amounts and not returning the full value.
So far, two more accomplices (proxies) have been identified – 22-year-old Nima Fazeli of Orlando and 19-year-old Mason Sheppard of the United Kingdom – who face federal charges as adults.
The judge has further ordered the 17-year-old off any internet-connected devices once bail is posted and restricted his movement to doctor and attorney appointments only. The judge has also asked Clark to surrender his passport to authorities.
Clark is facing 17 counts of communications fraud and 11 counts of fraudulent use of personal information. One count each for organizing fraud that saw him collect $5,000 and another for accessing a computer or electronic device without authority.
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