Canadian Teen Convicted in $37M Bitcoin Heist and 2020 X Hacking Spree

A Canadian teen has been sentenced for a $37 million Bitcoin (BTC) heist and the hacking of a number of X accounts.

This follows on-chain sleuth ZachXBT’s requires stricter penalties towards SIM swapping and social engineering fraudsters.

Suspect’s Sentence

ZachXBT revealed through a July 29 X post that Cameron Redman had been convicted and ordered to pay compensation following his involvement in a $37 million Bitcoin theft and a associated X hacking case that the investigator had uncovered.

Courtroom paperwork show that Redman has been sentenced to 12 months and 1 day, adopted by a three-year supervised launch time period for every depend, with all sentences to be served concurrently. He has additionally been ordered to pay a $400 particular evaluation, $248,257.07 in restitution, and a $60,000 tremendous.

On February 22, 2020, the Canadian teenager used a SIM swap assault to take management of crypto investor Josh Jones’s cell quantity, permitting him to bypass two-factor authentication and entry his wallets. He then stole 1,547 BTC and 60,000 Bitcoin Money (BCH), valued at round $37 million on the time.

Following the theft, Redman started laundering the stolen belongings via lots of of small transactions. These tokens have been ultimately funneled via centralized exchanges in an try to cover the path.

The perpetrator was later linked to phishing scams and the hacking of a number of NFT profiles on X. In accordance with ZachXBT, in June 2022, Redman supplied entry to an inner X panel on the market on the platform SWAPD. This was then bought for 250 ETH and led to the compromise of over 10 accounts and the theft of hundreds of thousands via phishing scams.

The detective added that the Canadian youth initially used pretend identification paperwork on SWAPD earlier than submitting his actual info, withdrew the sale proceeds via Twister Money, after which deposited the funds right into a Stake account.

On-chain knowledge linked the pockets he used to the compromised X accounts. The investigation recognized victims, together with Beeple, DeeKay, Zeneca, Nouns DAO, and JRNY Membership.

Requires Harder Guidelines

The suspect was formally charged on November 17, 2021, by Hamilton Police in Ontario. Authorities recovered $5.4 million in crypto, however the remaining $31.5 million continues to be lacking.

On the time of his arrest, Redman was nonetheless legally underage, which meant his title remained sealed and his photograph was not launched. ZachXBT has beforehand highlighted how this type of secrecy is a part of the issue, saying the convicted felony’s identification ought to have been revealed earlier on to stop additional illegal conduct.

Such instances are on the rise, with analysis from Keepnet Labs exhibiting a 1,055% enhance in SIM swap incidents within the UK in 2024. Elliptic’s State of Crypto Scams 2025 evaluation additionally highlighted phishing as a key methodology utilized by cybercriminals like North Korea’s Lazarus, with attackers more and more automating campaigns utilizing AI instruments.

In the meantime, ZachXBT beforehand reported that between November and December final yr, a single hacker breached over 15 X accounts, stealing greater than $500,000.