NEW YORK, NY — Nicholas Truglia, once considered a rising figure in the world of high-tech cybercrime, has been sentenced to an additional 12 years in prison after failing to repay $20 million in restitution related to a cryptocurrency fraud scheme. This new sentence follows his initial 18-month prison term handed down in December 2022 for wire fraud.
Truglia became infamous for using SIM-swapping techniques to steal large amounts of cryptocurrency by hijacking mobile phone numbers. His most notable victim was Michael Terpin, who lost $24 million in crypto assets after Truglia successfully rerouted his mobile phone number and gained access to his cryptocurrency wallets.
Despite pleading guilty and agreeing to repay over $20 million, Truglia failed to make any payments, prompting U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein to impose the extended sentence. The judge cited Truglia’s ability to pay and his deliberate attempts to evade compliance as the basis for the harsh penalty.
“He had the assets. He made no effort to repay the victims,” said Judge Hellerstein.
The U.S. Department of Justice emphasized the sophistication of Truglia’s operation, which involved exploiting security gaps in mobile carriers to gain access to two-factor authentication messages and steal digital assets.
In addition to his criminal sentence, Truglia had been hit with a $75 million civil judgment in favor of Terpin in 2019. Terpin also filed a $224 million lawsuit against his wireless carrier for negligence in protecting his account.
Truglia’s case has become a landmark in the growing legal crackdown on crypto-related financial crimes, especially SIM-swapping, which continues to pose a serious threat to digital asset security.
The sentence reinforces the U.S. legal system’s focus on enforcing restitution orders and holding fraudsters accountable—not just for their crimes, but also for their responsibilities to compensate victims.
