PANews reported on May 13 that according to Cointelegraph, US prosecutors recommend a two-year prison sentence for Eric Council Jr., an accomplice in the SEC official X account hacking case. Council assisted in controlling the SEC account through a SIM card swap attack, posting a false tweet about Bitcoin ETF approval in January 2024, causing significant market volatility. Prosecutors noted that his crime involved identity document forgery, telecommunications fraud, and transnational collaboration. The false information caused Bitcoin's price to surge by over $1,000 in a short time, until former SEC Chairman Gary Gensler clarified the situation. Council has pleaded guilty and will be sentenced on May 16. This case comes at a time when the Trump administration is replacing multiple interim prosecutors in judicial districts, with the Southern District of New York having recently sentenced former Celsius CEO Mashinsky to 12 years in prison.
