U.S. prosecutors have filed a civil forfeiture case targeting nearly $84 million in bank deposits and cryptocurrency linked to Capstone, a Montana money services business that authorities say misrepresented its business activity while handling payments for crypto firms.
The action centers on accounts held at major U.S. banks and a smaller amount of Tether’s USDT token. Court filings cited in the report describe Capstone as a payments company that allegedly presented itself as an information technology business in order to open bank accounts and move funds.
What authorities say was seized
According to the report, the government seized close to $81 million from Capstone accounts at Wells Fargo and about $2 million from an account at JPMorgan Chase. Prosecutors also took roughly $1.2 million worth of USDT, Tether’s dollar-pegged cryptocurrency.
Taken together, the bank balances and crypto holdings bring the total value of the assets in the case to nearly $84 million. The matter is being pursued through civil forfeiture, a process aimed at claiming assets that prosecutors say are tied to unlawful conduct.
Allegations in the complaint
Prosecutors allege that Capstone, which is registered in Montana, acted as a money services business while posing as an IT company when opening accounts at major banks. Authorities say the firm processed payments for two crypto companies through a bank in Dominica.
The court filings also allege that Capstone operated a scheme that converted fraud proceeds into cryptocurrency by posing as FBI agents. The report did not say that those allegations had been proven in court, and the case remains a civil forfeiture action rather than a criminal conviction.
Tether’s response and banks’ position
Tether said it was a customer of the bank in Dominica mentioned in the filings and said its assets there were limited. A spokesperson for the company said Tether had no knowledge of the conduct by Capstone that the U.S. Department of Justice described in its case.
The Justice Department did not accuse Tether or the other firms involved of wrongdoing, according to the report. Wells Fargo and JPMorgan Chase both declined to comment.
Capstone plans to fight the case
Capstone is contesting the allegations. A lawyer for the company told Reuters that the firm denies wrongdoing and intends to challenge the government’s complaint.
The next confirmed step is the legal fight over the forfeiture itself, with prosecutors seeking to keep the assets and Capstone indicating that it will oppose that effort in court.
Source: dailyhodl.com