Ilya Lichtenstein, the hacker behind one of the biggest bitcoin thefts ever, has been released early from a U.S. federal prison. He was involved in the 2016 hack of the Bitfinex digital assets exchange, where nearly 120,000 BTC were stolen.

He was originally sentenced to five years in prison. Lichtenstein and his wife were arrested in New York in February 2022, and the time he has spent in custody since then was credited toward his sentence, significantly reducing his remaining prison term. With that credit applied, Lichtenstein has spent roughly four years in custody.

Lichtenstein shared the news himself on social media. In a post on X, he wrote, “Thanks to President Trump’s First Step Act, I have been released from prison early.” He also said “I remain committed to making a positive impact in cybersecurity as soon as I can.”

His early release was made possible by the First Step Act, a prison reform law signed by Donald Trump in 2018. The law allows some non-violent offenders to reduce their sentences by earning time credits through good behavior, work programs, and rehabilitation. Because Lichtenstein’s crime involved money laundering and not violence, he qualified.

Even though he is out of prison, Lichtenstein is not completely free. A Trump administration official said he “has served significant time on his sentence and is currently on home confinement consistent with statute and Bureau of Prisons policies”.

Official records had listed his release date as February 9, showing the process followed standard legal steps. Lichtenstein was sentenced in November 2024 after admitting to laundering bitcoin stolen in the Bitfinex hack.

When the hack happened in August 2016, the stolen bitcoin was worth about $71 million. Today, because bitcoin’s price has risen sharply, that same amount is worth more than $10 billion.

Court documents describe the hack as highly complex. Investigators say Lichtenstein carried out more than 2,000 illegal transactions and used advanced techniques to hide the money. These included “chain hopping”, using mixing services, creating fake accounts, and even converting some bitcoin into gold coins.

Authorities were eventually able to recover about 94,000 bitcoin, but roughly 25,000 bitcoin are still missing. Despite the recovery, the case remains one of the most famous and closely watched crimes in Bitcoin’s history.

A statement by the U.S. Department of Justice says:

Lichtenstein has said that he alone carried out the hack and tried to protect his wife, Heather Morgan. “(My wife) was in no way involved in the hack itself,” he said, adding that “She didn’t even know about it for years.”

Morgan, who is also known by her rap name “Razzlekhan,” pleaded guilty to helping launder the stolen funds. She was sentenced to 18 months in prison but was also released early. In October, she announced her release online and later celebrated her husband’s return.

Posting a photo of the couple together, Morgan wrote, “The best New Years present I could get was finally having my husband home after 4 years of being apart.” In an earlier video, she also thanked Trump directly, saying, “It is very good to be back, and I want to give a shout out to Papa Trump for making my 18-month sentence shorter.”

Lichtenstein’s early release has caused strong reactions in the Bitcoin community. Some critics say letting major offenders out early sends the wrong message and weakens punishment for serious crimes.

One on-chain investigator mocked the situation with a meme reading “crime is legal,” while others questioned what happened to the missing bitcoin. Supporters of the First Step Act argue that the law is doing what it was meant to do. They say rewarding good behavior and rehabilitation helps people reform and creates a fairer justice system, especially for non-violent crimes.