Federal agents in North Carolina have seized over $61 million worth of Tether (USDT) tied to a large-scale "pig butchering" cryptocurrency investment scam. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of North Carolina announced the forfeiture, one of the largest of its kind, on Tuesday.
The scam involved perpetrators posing as romantic partners online, claiming special trading expertise to build trust with victims. They then directed targets to convincing but fraudulent cryptocurrency trading platforms. These fake sites displayed fictitious portfolios showing unusually high returns, enticing victims to invest more money. Once funds were deposited, the scammers blocked withdrawals and demanded additional fees or taxes when victims tried to recover their money.
Investigators from Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) in Raleigh traced the stolen funds across a network of wallets used to launder the proceeds. By following this chain, they identified several addresses still holding substantial balances, which were then seized. U.S. Attorney Ellis Boyle stated, "The seizure of a staggering $61 million … shows that, in the Eastern District of North Carolina, cheaters never win," highlighting the work of the district's asset forfeiture team.
The Department of Justice acknowledged the assistance of Tether, the stablecoin issuer, in the investigation. "The Department of Justice and HSI acknowledges Tether for its assistance in transferring these assets," the release stated. This cooperation exemplifies how stablecoin issuers are increasingly working with authorities to freeze and recover illicit funds flowing through dollar-pegged tokens.
This case arrives amid an explosive growth in crypto fraud. According to Chainalysis's 2026 Crypto Scams report, crypto scam losses in 2025 reached $17 billion. A significant driver is the rise of AI-driven impersonation and social engineering scams, which grew by 1,400% year-on-year and have become far more profitable than traditional schemes. In a related December 2025 incident, a Bitcoin investor reported losing his retirement savings to a similar scam using AI-generated personas.
U.S. prosecutors are securing major sentences for these crimes. In February 2026, a key figure in a pig butchering-linked crypto laundering operation involving over $70 million was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison, reflecting the serious judicial response to this category of crime.
