The Blubber

On Thursday, a man from New York confessed to being the original hacker behind the 2016 cyberattack on Bitfinex, a bitcoin theft that amounted to $4.5 billion in value. Ilya "Dutch" Lichtenstein, aged 35, made this shocking revelation during his guilty plea for laundering the stolen bitcoin at a federal court in Washington, D.C. Present in the audience was his wife, Heather Rhiannon Morgan, aged 33, who also pleaded guilty to charges of money laundering conspiracy and conspiracy to defraud the United States government.

Until Lichtenstein's court admission, the identity of the hacker responsible for stealing the bitcoin from Bitfinex remained unknown to the public. Notably, the couple was not charged in connection with the actual hack.

Lichtenstein faces a maximum potential sentence of 20 years in prison for one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. He has been held without bond since his arrest, as he was deemed a flight risk. He will continue to be detained until sentencing but has agreed to cooperate with federal investigators.

As for Morgan, a Russian emigre and aspiring rapper known as "Razzlekhan" and "The Crocodile of Wall Street," she faces a maximum potential sentence of five years in prison. She has been free on $3 million bond since her arrest.

During the plea hearing, there was an emotional moment when Lichtenstein and Morgan, separated for over a year, made eye contact, and Lichtenstein smiled and blew her a kiss.