U.S. Seeks To Seize $15M In USDT Tied To North Korean Hackers

The U.S. Department of Justice is pursuing permanent forfeiture of more than $15 million in USDT traced to North Korean hacker groups, part of efforts to disrupt Pyongyang’s cyber-funding operations.

Investigators identified the tokens as proceeds from four 2023 crypto platform breaches, including incidents aligned with the Poloniex, CoinsPaid, Alphapo, and a Panama-based exchange hacks.

The FBI seized the funds in March 2025, and the DOJ now aims to return them to victims once the forfeiture is approved. The action highlights U.S. attempts to curb North Korea’s growing reliance on crypto theft and illicit IT labor to finance its sanctioned weapons programs.

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