Federal authorities in North Carolina have seized over $61 million in USDT connected to a sophisticated investment scam known as a "pig-butchering" scheme. The operation, led by the Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and utilizing blockchain intelligence from TRM Labs, successfully dismantled a money laundering network that spanned multiple wallets and mixers. The scam involved fraudulent trading platforms that lured victims into depositing funds. Tether, the issuer of USDT, cooperated fully with the seizure, assisting in the transfer of the implicated assets. In 2025, similar scams resulted in approximately $35 billion in global on-chain losses.