As Bitcoin reached an all-time high of over $100,000 in 2024, many high-profile cryptocurrency criminals faced the consequences of their actions. Sam Bankman-Fried, the former CEO of FTX, began his New Year in prison after being sentenced to 25 years for fraud charges following the exchange's collapse in 2022. His counterparts, Caroline Ellison and Ryan Salame, also received substantial prison terms, while Alexey Pertsev, a Tornado Cash developer, remains incarcerated after his conviction for money laundering. David Carmona, the founder of the Ponzi scheme IcomTech, started his New Year in detention, alongside other promoters of the scheme. Meanwhile, Ilya Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan were sentenced for laundering funds from a Bitfinex hack, with Morgan's prison term pending as she is set to report soon. Additionally, there are discussions about potential clemency for Ross Ulbricht, the Silk Road founder serving a life sentence, with the upcoming presidential inauguration possibly influencing his fate.

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