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24-year-old Joseph Kim claims he intended to return approximately $2 million worth of Bitcoin after covering his own trading losses. He was found out before that could ever come to fruition.
The Chicago-based trader, working at Consolidated Trading LLC, was charged Thursday by the United States’ federal government with wire fraud for the theft of $2.06 million in Bitcoin and Litecoin from his employer.
Kim, described by one of his co-workers as a "degenerate gambler", becomes the first person in Chicago history to be charged with a crime tied to the cryptocurrency trading industry.
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The thefts occurred over a two-month period last year during which time Kim served on the firm’s newly-formed crypto trading group.
Kim stole as much as $3.2 million worth of Bitcoin and Litecoin but did return some $1.2 million prior to the theft being discovered.
“I can’t believe I did not stop myself when I had the money to give back, and I will live with that for the rest of my life,” Kim said.
The trader was believed to have used a portion of the stolen funds for gambling purposes.
- Aaron Goldstein, Gambling911.com
