Американский суд завершил дело против братьев, обвиняемых в мошенничестве с криптовалютой на $25 млн English Translation: American court closes case against brothers accused of $25 million cryptocurrency fraud

They were accused of defrauding $25 million.

A federal court in Manhattan has announced the termination of the trial concerning brothers Anton and James Peraira-Bueno, who faced allegations of fraud involving Ethereum and the theft of $25 million in cryptocurrency. This information was reported by Business Insider.

According to journalists present at the proceedings, the jury could not reach a unanimous verdict. In their final motion, they noted that during discussions, half of the jurors «suddenly burst into tears.» Some jurors conveyed to the judge in notes that they had experienced «sleepless nights.»

«We are all in agreement that we are not making any progress,» the jury stated.

The hearing was not extended, concluding a four-week trial. Prosecutors have not yet indicated whether they will pursue a retrial.

One juror approached the prosecutor and noted that the group struggled to come to a consensus on how to apply the law in this case. He also referred to «insufficient discussion of the facts.»

Throughout the trial, jurors repeatedly requested clarifications and definitions for crucial terms such as «unlawful,» «intentional,» «deceptive,» and «false representation.»

«There is no specific law regarding fraud in the blockchain sector. However, whether by phone, online, or in Ethereum, you cannot lie and deceive people for personal gain,» said Assistant Prosecutor Danielle Marie Kudla during her closing arguments.

The Peraira-Bueno brothers were arrested in the U.S. in May 2024. They were charged with conspiracy to commit electronic fraud and money laundering.

According to investigators, Anton and James, who studied mathematics and computer science «at one of the most prestigious universities in the world,» utilized their knowledge «to undermine the integrity of the blockchain.»

They executed an attack on operators of MEV bots specializing in arbitrage. To carry this out, they acquired 16 Ethereum validator accounts, investing 529.5 ETH (approximately $880,000) for this purpose.

To lure their victims, the brothers employed «trap transactions» — operations involving the purchase of specific illiquid tokens. The main process took about 12 seconds, but it was preceded by extensive preparation and testing.

This was the first time charges of this nature had been brought. The brothers faced up to 20 years in prison.

The defense claimed that the Peraira-Bueno brothers earned their funds legally: their software merely «outsmarted» the bots of their victims. According to the lawyer, the defendants’ actions are standard in the «extremely competitive bot-eating world of Ethereum.»

Conversely, the prosecution asserted that the brothers’ fraudulent actions involved «inputting a number of invalid zeros, which invalidated the transaction block they were meant to add to the blockchain.» Such manipulations allowed them to track and intervene in the victims’ trades.

However, neither side was able to definitively sway the jurors. This may not yet be the end of the legal proceedings in this case.

It is worth noting that in August, a jury in the U.S. found Tornado Cash developer Roman Storm partially guilty of conspiracy to operate an unlicensed money transfer business, disappointing the crypto community.