US Prosecutors to Extend Plea Deal to SEC X Account Hacker Eric Council Jr Seeking Cooperation in High-Profile Case

US Prosecutors to Extend Plea Deal to SEC X Account Hacker Eric Council Jr Seeking Cooperation in High-Profile Case

U.S. prosecutors are preparing a plea agreement for Eric Council Jr., the Alabama man accused of orchestrating a high-profile hack of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) X (formerly Twitter) account. The January breach, which led to the release of a fake post announcing approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs, caused a temporary surge in Bitcoin's price.

Council was arrested last week on charges of “conspiracy to commit aggravated identity theft and access device fraud.” In a recent hearing in the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., Assistant U.S. Attorney Kevin Rosenberg confirmed plans to offer Council a plea deal. However, whether Council will accept remains uncertain, according to Rosenberg’s statement to U.S. District Judge Amy Berman Jackson.

The fake post, alleging SEC approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs, reportedly caused Bitcoin’s price to jump by over $1,000 just a day before the SEC’s official announcement. Prosecutors allege that Council collaborated with unidentified co-conspirators in the hack, and if he accepts the plea deal, his cooperation could assist in prosecuting other participants involved.

The prosecutors claim Council was directed by co-conspirators who played key roles in the conspiracy. They allege that Council and his associates used SIM swapping, a method that fraudulently transfers phone numbers to new devices, to gain control over the SEC's social media account. According to court documents, Council used personal details obtained from his collaborators to create a fake ID, which he used to visit an AT&T store in Huntsville, Alabama. There, he allegedly acquired a SIM card linked to the victim’s number and used it to access the SEC's account on a new iPhone purchased with cash.

Judge Amy Berman Jackson, who also presides over an SEC case involving Binance, has set December 4 as the deadline for both parties to submit any proposed plea documentation. The government anticipates that Council’s cooperation could shed further light on the network and individuals behind the attack.