Source: Cointelegraph
Original: “SEC Hacker Sentenced to 14 Months in Prison”
A federal judge has sentenced Eric Council Jr. to 14 months in prison for his involvement in posting false announcements on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) X account, claiming that a spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETF would be approved.
Following a hearing on May 16 at the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, the Department of Justice announced that Council would serve 14 months after pleading guilty to a conspiracy charge involving aggravated identity theft and device fraud.
Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro stated, “Such schemes threaten the health and integrity of our market system. SIM card swapping schemes endanger the economic security of ordinary citizens, financial institutions, and government agencies.”
Council was part of a group that hacked the SEC's X account through a SIM card swapping attack in January 2024. Prosecutors had requested a two-year sentence, while Council's attorney sought a sentence of one year and one day. Court documents indicate that he earned approximately $50,000 through similar SIM card swapping attacks on the SEC X account, which may be subject to forfeiture.
The judge ordered Council to undergo 36 months of supervised release after serving his sentence. As of the time of publication, it is unclear when he will begin his prison term, but he has been released on a personal recognizance bond since his arrest in October 2024.
Council is the latest individual to be sentenced, drawing attention from the cryptocurrency industry. While high-profile criminal cases involving executives from the cryptocurrency exchange FTX have mostly concluded, other cases are still ongoing.
On May 8, former Celsius CEO Alex Mashinsky was sentenced to 12 years in prison after pleading guilty to two felony charges. The criminal trial of former SafeMoon CEO John Karony is also expected to continue for several days in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
Related: Another 12 individuals charged in $263 million cryptocurrency theft ring, funds squandered on nightclubs and luxury cars.
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