The United States Department of Justice (DoJ) has said it will revamp the team by onboarding more prosecutors than currently available. The move from DoJ has come forward amid growing caseload regarding cryptocurrency.
The Department of Justice published a speech on 20th July, made by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri. In the speech, Argentieri announced a merger of the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET) with the Computer Crime and Intellectual Property Section (CCIPS).
After the merger, NCET will continue investigating cases of cryptocurrency abuse with the help of CCIPS, a larger structure and additional resources. Furthermore, the merged unit will get a new acting director.
Argentieri said the NCET would become a permanent fixture of a section within department’s criminal division that handles a range of computer-related investigations.
Also Read: Five U.S. Agencies Unite to Form Anti-Crypto Crime Task Force
Following the inception, the immediate task for this new unit is to combat ransomware crimes. The NCET will focus on taking down criminals by tracking crypto transactions and freezing suspicious accounts.
The Department of Justice launched NCET in 2021 as a part of the Cryptocurrency Enforcement Framework, which was later focusing on investigating theft and hacks in DeFi.
