- The U.S. Justice Department seeks to forfeit nearly $328,000 in USDt linked to an online romance scam.
- Tether stated it had frozen about $4.2 billion in its stablecoin connected to suspected illicit activity since 2023.
- Authorities warn the public against sending cryptocurrency to individuals they have not met in person.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for Massachusetts moved this week to recover nearly $328,000 of Tether‘s USDt stablecoin, alleging it was tied to a money laundering scheme from an online romance scam. According to authorities, the fraud, which targeted a Massachusetts resident starting in 2024, was perpetrated by an individual using the alias “Linda Brown.”
Consequently, the Justice Department filed a civil forfeiture action to seize the funds. Some victim funds were traced to multiple unhosted cryptocurrency wallets, which authorities seized in August 2025.
Meanwhile, this legal action follows a broader trend of increased regulatory scrutiny on cryptocurrency misuse. A February report claimed that Tether had frozen about $4.2 billion worth of its USDt stablecoin allegedly connected to illicit activities since 2023.
The company can freeze its stablecoin by blacklisting specific wallet addresses. For example, Tether reported in February it had frozen about $544 million at the request of Turkish authorities.
This recent forfeiture notice arrived roughly three weeks after Valentine’s Day celebrations. However, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio had already issued a pre-holiday warning about romance scams.
✅ Follow BITNEWSBOT on Telegram, Facebook, LinkedIn, X.com, and Google News for instant updates.
