WASHINGTON, Sept 9 — Singaporean Malone Lam pleaded guilty in a federal court to a racketeering conspiracy charge for leading a cryptocurrency theft ring that stole more than US$260 million (RM1.05 billion) from victims across the United States.

In yesterday’s hearing, Lam, 22, admitted organising a sophisticated “social engineering” operation that targeted people with large cryptocurrency holdings, according to a CNA report.

He and his co‑conspirators impersonated employees of trusted companies, including Google, to persuade victims to disclose passwords, seed phrases and authentication codes that unlocked their digital wallets.

“I plead guilty, Your Honour,” Lam said after a long…