Newport Beach Man Gets 70 Months for $3.5M Crypto Laundering

Evan Tangeman, 22, of Newport Beach was sentenced on April 24, 2026 to 70 months in federal prison and ordered to serve three years of supervised release after admitting he laundered at least $3.5 million in proceeds from a social‑engineering cryptocurrency scheme that prosecutors say stole roughly $263 million.

Tangeman pleaded guilty in December 2025 to participating in a racketeering conspiracy prosecuted in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Court filings say the multi‑state criminal enterprise operated from October 2023 through at least May 2025 and relied on relationships built on online gaming platforms.

According to prosecutors, the group-described in filings as the Social Engineering Enterprise-coordinated thefts of cryptocurrency, draining about $263 million in Bitcoin from a single Washington, D.C. victim and taking additional funds from other victims nationwide. Tangeman admitted to processing and concealing millions of dollars in illicit proceeds as part of that network.

Federal agents searching Tangeman’s Newport Beach residence seized high‑end vehicles, including a 2022 Rolls‑Royce Ghost valued at more than $300,000 and a Porsche GT3 RS. Court records and prosecutors’ statements say members of the enterprise used stolen funds to buy luxury homes in Los Angeles and Miami valued between about $4 million and nearly $9 million and to cover monthly rental costs reported at $40,000 to $80,000.

Prosecutors say Tangeman also attempted to obstruct the investigation by trying to destroy evidence after co‑conspirators were arrested. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro described the thefts as “built on greed so brazen it borders on the cartoonish,” adding that defendants “stole millions, spent it on half‑million‑dollar nightclub tabs, Lamborghinis, and Rolexes.” The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Tangeman’s obstruction efforts influenced the sentence.

Tangeman’s plea is the ninth guilty plea in the probe. The case is part of a broader federal effort to target cryptocurrency‑enabled money laundering and large thefts, with recent enforcement actions including seizures of platforms and prosecutions tied to major ransomware and crypto theft operations.