Eric Council Jr., the individual charged over his involvement for allegedly hacking the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s X account and posting a message suggesting that Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) had been approved, has pleaded not guilty in a DC courtroom.
In an Oct. 25 arraignment before Judge Amy Berman Jackson in the US District Court for the District of Columbia, Council Jr. entered a plea of not guilty for one charge of conspiracy to commit aggravated identity theft and access device fraud. He was allegedly part of a group that hacked the SEC’s X account in January, publishing a post that claimed the commission had officially approved spot Bitcoin (BTC) ETFs for the first time.
The fake SEC X post — since removed — announcing the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs. Source: US SEC/X
Officials with the Federal Bureau of Investigation arrested Council Jr. in Alabama on Oct. 17. According to Bloomberg, prosecutors intended to “extend a plea” to Council Jr. It’s unclear if US authorities also intend to execute additional arrest warrants for individuals involved in the SEC breach.
According to US authorities, the group of which Council Jr. was allegedly a part took control of the SEC’s X account through a SIM swap attack. X’s safety team reported, with the SEC later confirming, that the commission’s account did not have two-factor authentication enabled, leading to the breach.
Shaking up markets with ETF post
On Jan. 9, 2024, as many in and out of the crypto space were anticipating the SEC to announce whether it would approve or disapprove of listing spot Bitcoin ETFs on US exchanges, Council Jr. allegedly helped a group to hack the commission’s X account and post a fake announcement claiming the approval had gone through.
Related: Fake spot Bitcoin ETF tweet ‘likely wasn’t the SEC,’ says Blockchain Association director
The fake post immediately caused BTC’s price to surge by more than $1,000 before SEC Chair Gary Gensler — also on X — denied the news, claiming that the regulator’s account had been compromised. On Jan. 10, the SEC officially announced the approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs from 11 asset managers.
Judge Jackson is also overseeing the SEC’s case against cryptocurrency exchange Binance over allegations of the sale and offering of unregistered securities. The case has been ongoing since being filed by the SEC in June 2023.
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