Fans of Netflix documentaries will be delighted to hear that the streamer has a new documentary on the way. The currently untitled project will follow the story of a couple — Ilya “Dutch” Lichtenstein and Heather Morgan — who allegedly attempted to launder stolen cryptocurrency worth billions of dollars in what is now referred to as the biggest criminal financial crime case in history. While Morgan describes herself as a serial entrepreneur, Lichtenstein is a self-described coder, investor, and technology entrepreneur. The pair’s alleged scheme gained national and international attention when they were arrested in their New York City apartment on Tuesday, February 8, 2022. As such, this announcement from Netflix is undeniably swift and timely.
The arrested couple now faces charges of conspiring to launder nearly 120,000 Bitcoin. The Bitcoin in question has been tied to the 2016 hack of a virtual currency exchange – Hong Kong’s Bitfinex. Lichtenstein allegedly transferred the stolen cryptocurrency to a digital wallet that he owned. Due to the cryptocurrency boom, the value of stolen bitcoin increased significantly, from $71 million at the time of the hack to nearly $5 billion. Court papers allege that the couple tried to liquidate the digital currency by purchasing gold, NFTs, $500 Walmart gift cards, creating fake identities, and using other varied money-laundering techniques.
It is unclear what angle the streamer will take for the documentary, but the legacy of the team behind the project definitely instills confidence in the new docuseries. Chris Smith, who produced Tiger King and FYRE: The Greatest Party That Never Happened, is set to direct the upcoming documentary. He will also serve as an executive producer alongside Nick Bilton, known for his involvement in Fake Famous, The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley, and more.
From Tiger King to Operation Varsity Blues, Netflix has the documentary industry on lock. The digital media company has consistently put out some of the best documentaries of recent years and is currently enjoying renewed success with its Tinder Swindler. As such, the announcement that Netflix has another documentary in the works is welcome news.
At the moment, the development of the documentary is still in its infancy. As such, the project is currently untitled with no release date on the books. However, Collider will have updates as more information on the documentary is released, so be sure to check back in for updates.