Newcastle man sentenced to 5 years in $97M crypto laundering

Geoffrey K. Auyeung, 47, of Newcastle, Washington, received a five-year prison term after admitting he helped launder $97.1 million in proceeds from overseas investment scams, the U.S. Department of Justice said.

Prosecutors say the scheme ran from August 2022 through August 2024 and involved fraudsters who told victims they were buying oil tank storage and should send funds to escrow accounts. Once money was deposited into accounts Auyeung set up, it was moved quickly to other accounts, sent offshore, or converted to cryptocurrency, the Justice Department reported.

Authorities say Auyeung established at least nine companies to receive investor funds, opened at least 81 bank accounts at 24 financial institutions and created 19 accounts on eight cryptocurrency exchanges. Records reviewed by prosecutors show $97.1 million in transfers and deposits into those accounts, which are believed to be proceeds of fraud.

Much of the money was converted into bitcoin, ether, USDT and USDC using exchanges that included Gemini, Coinbase and BitStamp, and then transferred to Binance accounts controlled by individuals in Nigeria and Russia, the DOJ said.

Prosecutors allege Auyeung received at least $4 million in commission payments for his role. After his indictment, he continued to handle transactions using accounts in his wife’s name and took an additional $400,000 in commissions between August 2024 and December 2025, the government says. Auyeung was arrested in August 2024 and pleaded guilty in February.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd commented in the Department of Justice release: “Mr. Auyeung facilitated a fraud, developed by others, that stole investor money while lulling them with promises of a legitimate escrow account.”

As part of the case resolution, Auyeung agreed to forfeit about $7.1 million in cryptocurrency, approximately $2.3 million seized from bank accounts and his home, an Audi SQ8, and roughly $300,000 remaining in bank accounts. The government has sought more than $24 million in restitution for victims.

Federal investigators traced wire transfers and cryptocurrency movements to identify intermediaries who enabled cross-border transfers. The DOJ said the case illustrates the use of shell companies, multiple bank accounts and major crypto exchanges to move funds from victims to overseas accounts.