Overview
- House Representatives Lance Gooden and Josh Gottheimer introduced legislation to set up an attorney general–led task force that would coordinate the DOJ, FBI, DHS and Treasury on crypto theft cases.
- The bill would make the task force the primary federal coordinator for preventing and investigating digital-asset theft and for providing victims a clear place to report crimes.
- Supporters say the task force would operate on a voluntary basis that respects local control and would standardize guidance, training and case handling for state and local law enforcement.
- The proposal is framed against large losses in the sector, with reporting that roughly $11 billion was lost to crypto thefts and scams last year and that Treasury’s Scam Center Strike Force seized more than $700 million tied to overseas scams.
- The measure’s prospects are uncertain because it must secure a committee path or be attached to must-move legislation to advance, and it follows earlier shifts in federal enforcement such as the disbanding of the DOJ’s National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team.