James Zhong

James "Jimmy" Zhong is an American man who was convicted in 2022 for stealing over 51,680 bitcoin (then worth about $620,000;^[2] value as of 2023 approximately $3.4 billion^[3]) from the online black market Silk Road between 2012 and 2014.^[4] Zhong, who was closely monitoring the early development of bitcoin,^[5] had found an error on Silk Road that allowed him to withdraw more funds than what was initially deposited. This was activated by repeatedly double clicking the withdraw button, and further abused by using multiple accounts on the website.^[3]

James Zhong
Born	James Zhong (1990-05-24) May 24, 1990 (age 33)^[2]
Other names	Jimmy Zhong
Alma mater	University of Georgia (BS)
Years active	2012–2022
Known for	Largest theft of Bitcoin in US history
Conviction(s)	Wire fraud
Criminal penalty	1 year and 1 day imprisonment^[1]
Date apprehended	November 9, 2021

Zhong managed to conceal his identity and elude detection for nearly 10 years. He lived a luxurious lifestyle, using tools such as cryptocurrency mixers to obscure the origin of the bitcoin he spent.^[5] Zhong told friends that he had mined thousands of bitcoin in the technology's early days.^[5]

On March 13, 2019, Zhong contacted 911 to report the theft of hundreds of thousands of dollars in cryptocurrency from his residence.^[6] In September 2019, he made a mistake by transferring a small amount of stolen bitcoin to a cryptocurrency exchange that followed know-your-customer rules. This wasn’t enough to prove Zhong was the hacker. To establish Zhong's culpability, the IRS criminal investigation division collaborated with the Athens-Clarke County Police Department, which was already probing the theft at Zhong's residence.^[5] On November 9, 2021, a raid on his Gainesville, Georgia home resulted in the seizure of about 50,676 bitcoin, then valued at over $3.36 billion.^[7] Zhong cooperated with investigators, forfeited all of his bitcoin and pled guilty to one count of wire fraud.^[8]

In April 2023, Zhong was sentenced to a year and a day in prison.^[1]

See also

• Silk Road (marketplace)
• Cryptocurrency and crime

References

1. Davis, Charles R. (14 Apr 2023). "Man gets prison time after feds discover $3.4 billion in stolen bitcoin hidden inside a Cheetos popcorn tin and underground safe". Business Insider. from the original on 12 July 2023. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
2. "Sentencing Memorandum Submitted On Behalf of James Zhong" (PDF). (PDF) from the original on 2023-10-30. Retrieved 2023-10-24.
3. "Southern District of New York | U.S. Attorney Announces Historic $3.36 Billion Cryptocurrency Seizure And Conviction In Connection With Silk Road Dark Web Fraud | United States Department of Justice". www.justice.gov. 2022-11-07. from the original on 2023-02-12. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
4. "Southern District of New York | Silk Road Dark Web Fraud Defendant Sentenced Following Seizure And Forfeiture Of Over $3.4 Billion In Cryptocurrency | United States Department of Justice". www.justice.gov. 14 April 2023. from the original on 10 August 2023. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
5. Tortorelli, Paige; Javers, Eamon (2023-10-17). "The secret life of Jimmy Zhong, who stole – and lost – more than $3 billion". CNBC. from the original on 2023-10-18. Retrieved 2023-10-19.
6. Tortorelli, Eamon Javers,Paige (2023-10-17). "The secret life of Jimmy Zhong, who stole – and lost – more than $3 billion". CNBC. Retrieved 2024-04-30.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
7. Tortorelli, Paige (7 November 2022). "Feds announce seizure of $3.36 billion in bitcoin stolen a decade ago from illegal Silk Road marketplace—the second-largest crypto recovery". CNBC. from the original on 12 July 2023. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
8. Voreacos, David (14 Apr 2023). "Theft of Bitcoin that topped $3 billion in value leads to one-year prison sentence for James Zhong: 'I always knew what I did was wrong'". Fortune. from the original on 12 July 2023. Retrieved 12 July 2023.