Former Security Engineer Arrested for $9M Crypto Theft and NFT Fraud

Shakeeb Ahmed, a former senior security engineer at an international technology company, has been arrested and charged with wire fraud and money laundering for defrauding a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange. Ahmed allegedly exploited a vulnerability in the exchange's smart contracts, causing it to generate approximately $9 million in inflated fees, which he fraudulently withdrew. He then attempted to launder the stolen funds through complex transactions on the blockchain. Law enforcement agencies, including Homeland Security Investigations and the Internal Revenue Service, tracked Ahmed's activities and arrested him in New York. If convicted, Ahmed faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.