Crypto Investigator Uncovers $46M Theft
On-chain investigator ZachXBT has announced the arrest of John Daghita in the Caribbean for an audacious theft. Daghita allegedly stole over $46 million in seized US government crypto assets through his father's company, which held a contract with the U.S. Marshals Service.
The alleged theft was reportedly set in motion by a dispute in a private Telegram group, where two individuals were arguing over who controlled more cryptocurrency. John Daghita, using the online alias 'Lick,' allegedly screen-shared a wallet to prove his wealth, inadvertently revealing addresses that ZachXBT traced back to government-managed funds. Daghita's father, Dean Daghita, is the president of Command Services & Support (CMDSS), a Virginia-based IT firm. In October 2024, CMDSS was awarded a contract to help the U.S. Marshals Service manage and dispose of certain categories of seized digital assets. The arrest of the 25-year-old Daghita took place on the Caribbean island of Saint Martin on March 4, 2026. The joint operation was conducted by the FBI and France's Gendarmerie Nationale. Authorities reportedly seized a metal briefcase filled with cash, multiple hard drives, and USB-based hardware security keys at the time of the arrest. Following ZachXBT's initial allegations in January 2026, Daghita reportedly taunted the investigator on Telegram. He also allegedly sent small amounts of the stolen crypto to ZachXBT's public wallet address in a "dust attack." This incident has brought increased scrutiny to the U.S. Marshals Service's practice of using outside contractors to manage seized crypto assets. A 2022 audit by the Department of Justice's Office of the Inspector General had previously highlighted that the USMS was using spreadsheets to manage its crypto inventory and lacked documented policies for doing so. The management of seized cryptocurrencies has been a recurring challenge for government agencies. In a separate incident, the South Korean National Tax Service inadvertently exposed the master key to a seized crypto wallet in a press release, leading to a significant theft. The U.S. Marshals Service has also faced criticism for its timing of Bitcoin auctions, with some analyses suggesting substantial potential gains were lost for taxpayers.
