Canadian teen behind $48 million crypto heist strikes again — this time targeting X and NFT artists

Cryptocurrency theft Canadian youth cybercrime: In the summer of 2022, a 19-year-old stood in a Hamilton courtroom, expressing remorse for stealing $48 million in cryptocurrency in what authorities had called the largest theft of its kind from an individual, as per a report. He said, “I intend to move forward only in a positive direction,” adding he was “very sorry,” as quoted in The Globe and Mail report.

Canadian Teen Expresses Remorse for $48 Million Cryptocurrency Theft

His lawyer said that the teenager at that time intended to use his skills for good, to work in cybersecurity, "a fitting way for this case to come full circle," as quoted in the report.

He was sentenced to one year of probation, with the judge taking into account the year he had already spent in custody and the fact that he was just 17 years when the crime occurred, as per The Globe and Mail report. Under Canada’s Youth Criminal Justice Act, his identity remains protected. As part of his sentence, he was banned from dealing with cryptocurrency, a significant penalty for someone who had used digital assets to carry out one of Canada’s most infamous cybercrimes, according to the report.


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Repeat Offense: Second Crypto Heist Targets Twitter and NFT Artists

But behind the apologies and pledges to do better, the young man was already orchestrating another scheme.

Just weeks after his sentencing in Ontario, the same youth was carrying out a second high-profile crypto heist, this time in the United States, and targeting prominent social media accounts on what was then known as Twitter, now X, as per The Globe and Mail report. In July 2025, the now 22-year-old was back in court, this time in Alexandria, Virginia, where a judge sentenced him to one year in prison for his role in a string of NFT digital art related scams.

Despite his public contrition in Hamilton, court documents reveal the young man was privately boasting about the $48 million theft and claimed to still control around $15 million, as per The Globe and Mail report. Prosecutors described him as a “sophisticated, successful and repeat cybercriminal,” according to the report.

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The NFT Scam Involving “Beeple” and the Twitter Partner Support Panel

His second wave of frauds, though smaller in scale, netting about $800,000, shook the crypto world again, among his targets were high-profile NFT influencers and artists, including Mike Winkelmann, known as “Beeple,” whose digital art had once sold for a record $69 million, as per The Globe and Mail report.

The heist followed a familiar playbook: gain access to valuable accounts, post scam links, and trick followers into giving up their crypto, according to the report. Court documents say the young man had access to Twitter’s internal “partner support panel,” meant for use by employees and trusted partners to expedite services like password resets, as per The Globe and Mail report.

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Collaboration and Betrayal: A Second Hacker Enters the Scene

He used it to hijack Beeple’s account and push a fraudulent raffle for Louis Vuitton-branded NFTs, according to the report. Victims who followed the instructions weren’t rewarded, they unknowingly gave hackers access to their digital wallets as it would lead to a fraudulent website to connect their digital wallets to participate in the raffle, as per the report. Though this first attempt didn’t fully succeed due to technical issues, the teen soon brought in a collaborator, described in court as a US resident with stronger skills in draining wallets, and together, they improved the scheme, building a convincing fake website that lured users into giving up their assets, as per The Globe and Mail report.

The second heist targeted around 80 victims, netting nearly $450,000, but despite agreeing to split the earnings, the US collaborator reportedly kept the loot, betraying the young man, according to the report.

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After being double-crossed, the teen switched strategies. He sold his privileged access to the Twitter panel for 230 ethers (worth over $280,000 at the time) and 10% of future heist earnings, as per the report. It was meant to be exclusive, meaning that the young man from Hamilton would not sell that access to anyone else, as per The Globe and Mail report.

This deal was made just three days after the young man had told an Ontario courtroom he was ready to leave crime behind and apologized for stealing $48 million in crypto, according to the report.

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Selling Access and Mentoring an American Minor

He began mentoring the American teen, guiding him and others through four new scams, and their targets included NFT communities and creators like DeeKay, Zeneca, Nouns DAO, and JRNY Club, as per The Globe and Mail report.

However, the partnership soured. The Canadian teen extorted the minor for a larger share of the profits, then tried to resell the same Twitter access to others, violating their exclusive agreement, according to the report. Meanwhile, the effectiveness of the scam was waning. Victims were quicker to spot fakes, and Twitter’s internal tools eventually stopped working and some fraudulent tweets were taken down within minutes, as per The Globe and Mail report.

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Attempted Life Change in Portugal Interrupted by FBI Arrest

In 2023, the young man left for Portugal, where he reportedly began to turn his life around. According to his defence, he formed real relationships, enrolled in a computer programming course, and found “companionship and purpose” for the first time in years, as reported by The Globe and Mail.

But the past caught up with him. The American teen he had mentored and later extorted, cooperated with US authorities and so did the tech-savvy ringer who once scammed him. Both gave information to the FBI in exchange for immunity, as per The Globe and Mail report.

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Guilty Plea and Uncertain Future Upon Return to Canada

In December 2024, the Canadian youth was arrested and extradited to the United States in March 2025, according to the report. He later pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to commit aggravated identity theft, as reported by The Globe and Mail.

What happens when he returns to Canada remains uncertain as he violated the terms of his probation for the $48 million heist when he carried out this new series of scams, which risks legal consequences, according to the report.

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FAQs

Who is the teen involved in this massive crypto theft?
His identity is protected by law because he was a minor when the crimes happened.

What was the second scam about?
He hacked Twitter accounts of famous NFT artists and scammed their followers.