Argentina Orders Forensic Search of President Milei’s Phones Amid LIBRA Meme Coin Scandal

Argentina’s judiciary has taken an unprecedented step in the ongoing LIBRA meme coin controversy. Federal prosecutor Eduardo Taiano has authorized a forensic search of President Javier Milei’s mobile devices to investigate potential communications with the promoters of the LIBRA token — a digital asset that surged and collapsed amid allegations of insider trading and fraud.

According to official filings, forensic experts will recover deleted data, analyze messaging histories, and trace geolocation records from Milei’s phones around the time of the coin’s launch. The probe will focus on identifying exchanges between the President and LIBRA’s alleged backers — Hayden Mark Davis, Mauricio Novelli, and Manuel Terrones Godoy — to determine whether any coordination or privileged financial information was shared before the token’s rapid price movement.

The request extends beyond the President. Prosecutors will also examine the devices of Karina Milei, Secretary General of the Presidency, and Sergio Morales, a former advisor to Argentina’s National Securities Commission. Investigators will review possible communications with other industry figures linked to the scandal, including Ripio co-founder Sebastián Serrano, Kip Protocol CEO Julian Peh, Cardano founder Charles Hoskinson, and Cube Exchange CEO Bartosz Lipinski.

Authorities have confirmed that the search will include multiple messaging platforms — Telegram, WhatsApp, X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn — along with all 13 of the President’s known phone numbers. The analysis will also identify references to terms such as “meme coin,” “$LIBRA,” “pump and dump,” “insider,” and “rug pull,” as well as determine whether wallet applications like Phantom or Solflare were installed on the devices.

The LIBRA token gained notoriety earlier this year after Milei endorsed it on social media shortly after its debut, propelling the meme coin to a market capitalization exceeding $4 billion. Within days, however, insiders reportedly cashed out over $100 million in profits, triggering a collapse that left thousands of investors with heavy losses. The event quickly drew comparisons to a classic rug pull — a common crypto scam in which developers abruptly withdraw liquidity after inflating a token’s price.

Although Milei deleted his post following the crash, the damage had already sparked public outrage. The President initially denied any formal involvement in promoting LIBRA but later conceded in an interview that the episode was “a slap in the face.”

Now, Argentina’s judiciary is coordinating with U.S. legal authorities to track funds tied to the suspected cash-out. In the United States, Burwick Law has filed a class-action lawsuit against Milei on behalf of affected investors, alleging misleading promotion and financial negligence.

The outcome of the phone analysis could have significant political consequences. It represents the first time in Argentina’s modern history that a sitting president faces forensic scrutiny over a cryptocurrency scandal — a case that could redefine how political accountability intersects with digital asset regulation.