The Department of Justice reported yesterday that it filed a civil complaint to seize roughly $225.3 million in cryptocurrency linked to crypto investment scams. Pig butchering rings often traffic the workers who directly communicate with victims to Southeast Asian countries, something the DOJ alleges this ring did. ), the former Heartland Tri-State Bank president who was sentenced to 24 years in prison for embezzling tens of millions of dollars to invest in one of the best-known and most devastating pig butchering scams. An FBI report cited by the press release concluded overall crypto investment fraud caused $5.8 billion worth of reported losses in 2024. Money recovered from this seizure will be put toward returning funds to the known victims of the scammers, the DOJ says.