U.S. prosecutors have filed charges seeking the seizure of $3.44 million in USDT in connection with online investment fraud and money laundering.

CoinFeed reported on March 11 that, according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Massachusetts, the office has filed a civil forfeiture lawsuit seeking to recover approximately 3.444 million USDT, assets allegedly proceeds of an online investment fraud and money laundering scheme. The investigation began in late 2024, and the scam targeted at least four victims, including two Massachusetts residents, one Utah resident, and one South Carolina resident. Court documents allege that an unknown entity established trust with victims through misleading text messages or encrypted communication applications such as WhatsApp and Telegram, then lured them into investing in a supposedly exclusive Ethereum investment opportunity backed by physical gold. Victims were instructed to purchase ETH and transfer it to an intermediary wallet controlled by the unknown entity; the funds were then converted into USDT and transferred to a non-custodial wallet for theft.