US federal agents have seized more than $61 million worth of USDT. Investigators traced the seized funds to cryptocurrency addresses allegedly linked to the laundering of criminal proceeds obtained through ‘pig butchering’ schemes. According to the official press release, the funds were connected to scams in which victims were recruited and manipulated into transferring money under false pretenses. A tip to Homeland Security unraveled a multi-wallet laundering scheme, which ultimately resulted in a $61 million Tether confiscation.
Criminal actors targeted victims by establishing trust and often posed as romantic partners. After gaining victims’ confidence, the scammers claimed to have specialized knowledge or techniques that could generate massive profits through cryptocurrency trading. Victims were directed to fraudulent cryptocurrency trading platforms that closely resembled legitimate platforms in name and appearance. These fake platforms displayed fabricated investment portfolios and showed unusually high returns, and when victims attempted to withdraw their funds, they were told they needed to pay additional ‘taxes’ or ‘fees’ to release their assets.
Once funds were transferred to cryptocurrency wallets controlled by the scammers, the money was rapidly moved through multiple wallets to conceal its source, ownership, and control. In this case, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents and analysts in Raleigh received a complaint through the HSI Tip Line and traced the victim’s funds through several cryptocurrency wallets involved in the alleged fraud and money laundering scheme. Authorities also revealed that some of those wallets still held significant amounts of victims’ funds, making them subject to seizure and forfeiture.
Tether has been involved in several financial crime investigations in coordination with international law enforcement agencies, assisting efforts to track, freeze, and support the seizure of illicit funds. On July 22, 2025, the US Department of Justice announced a civil forfeiture action against Buy Cash Money and Money Transfer Company involving freezing and reissuing $1.6 million in USDT allegedly tied to Gaza-based terror financing. In June 2025, Brazilian authorities blocked approximately $6.2 million in a cross-border scheme conducted through Klever Wallet, and the DOJ-OKX civil forfeiture sought roughly $225 million in USDT linked to pig butchering investment scams. In March 2025, the United States Secret Service froze $23 million in funds associated with transactions on the Russian-sanctioned exchange Garantex.
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