Judge sets trial for October 2025 against brothers suspected of behind $25M exploit

A federal judge has set a date for the criminal trial of two brothers accused of stealing $25 million in crypto using high-value (MEV) bots.

At an Aug. 19 hearing in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Judge Jessica Clark ordered Anton Perre-Bueno and James Pepper-Bueno to appear on charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud on Oct. 14, 2025. Conspiracy to commit fraud, wire fraud and money laundering. Justice Department officials allege the brothers fraudulently obtained $25 million worth of crypt “within 12 seconds” using a method that “calls into question the validity of the blockchain.”

The alleged exploit using the Ethereum blockchain involves the use of MEV bots using a series of test transactions to steal crypto from a target block. US authorities arrested the Perrier-Bueno brothers in May and are now free on $250,000 bond each, in addition to certain travel restrictions.

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U.S. authorities say the brothers have refused demands to return the stolen funds and have diverted the assets to multiple wallets, hiding them using shell companies and foreign crypto exchanges. If convicted, they could face up to 20 years in prison on each count.

Over the past 12 months, several prominent figures in the crypto industry have gone to prison following criminal trials or plea deals with prosecutors. Former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried is serving a 25-year prison sentence for misappropriating customer funds and related charges, while former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao is serving a four-month prison sentence after pleading guilty to one felony count.

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