Wallet tied to suspected US asset theft launches memecoin that crashes 97%

A cryptocurrency wallet previously linked by analysts to the suspected theft of digital assets seized by the U.S. government has launched its own memecoin on Solana. The token, named John Daghita (LICK) and created on the Pump.fun platform, plunged more than 97% within 24 hours of its debut.

On-chain data shows LICK’s market cap briefly reached about $915,000 before falling below $25,000. Before the token’s initial price surge, its creator made four purchases while the market cap was still under $21,000.

Blockchain investigator ZachXBT reported that addresses tied to the token’s creator control tens of millions of dollars in crypto allegedly connected to assets seized by U.S. authorities in 2024–2025. A spokesperson for the U.S. Marshals Service confirmed an ongoing investigation but declined to provide details.

ZachXBT claims the token’s creator may be John Daghita — the son of CMDSS president Dean Daghita — and that he may have gained unauthorized access to wallets managed by U.S. officials.

The on-chain data sparked renewed concern around early memecoin launches: a Bubblemaps visualization showed that the token owner controlled 40% of the entire LICK supply. Such concentration is widely viewed as a potential signal of a “rug pull,” where a project’s initiator can tank the market by selling most of the liquidity.

Bubblemaps noted that this level of concentration increases the risk of mass sell-offs or manipulation, especially at early stages. The case reminded traders of one of the biggest memecoin failures of 2025: WOLF, inspired by *The Wolf of Wall Street*, which lost 99% of its value within hours, wiping out about $42 million in market cap. The WOLF creator held 80% of the initial token supply.

The launch of LICK comes amid rising enthusiasm for Solana memecoins but also heightened scrutiny from analysts pointing to risks of manipulation, opaque allocations and unstable liquidity.

The token’s rapid collapse again underscored investor vulnerability in early-stage token launches, where limited transparency and high supply concentration allow insiders to exert significant influence over the market.