A former security engineer, who stole digital assets valued at more than $12 million from two decentralized exchanges, has received a three-year prison sentence. In what has been characterized as the “first-ever” conviction for a smart contract hack, the U.S. Judge also ordered the ex-engineer to forfeit roughly $12.3 million.
Former Security Engineer Sentenced to Three Years for Hacking Two Decentralized Exchanges
This article was published more than a year ago. Some information may no longer be current.
WRITTEN BY
SHARE
Ex-Engineer Sentenced to Three Years of Supervised Release
Shakeeb Ahmed, a former security engineer accused of hacking two decentralized cryptocurrency exchanges, has been sentenced to three years in prison by U.S. District Judge Victor Marrero. Ahmed has also been ordered to forfeit approximately $12.3 million and a significant quantity of cryptocurrency.
According to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Ahmed must pay more than $5 million in restitution to Nirvana and the unnamed decentralized exchanges ( dex). The judge also sentenced Ahmed, 34, to three years of supervised release.
As reported by Bitcoin.com News in December 2023, Ahmed admitted to exploiting a vulnerability in one of the dex platform’s smart contracts. After defrauding the platforms, Ahmed attempted to cover his tracks by swapping the stolen digital assets for a privacy coin. However, despite these and other measures, Ahmed was ultimately apprehended by U.S. law enforcement in July 2023.
Commenting on Ahmed’s sentencing nearly four years after he pleaded guilty to computer fraud, U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said:
Today [April 12], Shakeeb Ahmed was sentenced to prison in the first-ever conviction for the hack of a smart contract and ordered to forfeit all of the stolen crypto. No matter how novel or sophisticated the hack, this Office and our law enforcement partners are committed to following the money and bringing hackers to justice.
Williams said the punishment imposed on Ahmed should serve as a warning to hackers who might commit a similar offense.
What are your thoughts on this story? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.
