A 21-year-old Florida resident has been arrested by federal authorities for operating a cryptocurrency theft scheme that stole over $220,000 from thousands of victims. Zyaire Wilkins and his co-conspirators distributed eight malware-laden games—including BlockBlasters and PirateFi—primarily through Steam between May 2024 and February 2026. The operation successfully infected approximately 8,000 devices and compromised 80 cryptocurrency wallets before authorities intervened.

Federal investigators traced Wilkins through his cryptocurrency transactions, following digital evidence from his wallet address to purchases on a gift card resale platform that revealed his phone number and location. The games were promoted as legitimate entertainment across Discord, Telegram, X, and LinkedIn, with embedded malware designed to steal victims' private financial information and access their digital assets. Wilkins was arrested on July 14 and charged with conspiracy to obtain computer-based information for private financial gain, with individual games in the scheme having stolen amounts exceeding $150,000 each.