This article was published on November 26, 2018

$3M worth of cryptocurrency seized from Bulgarian criminals

Watch out for those crypto-criminals


$3M worth of cryptocurrency seized from Bulgarian criminals

Yet another group of organized criminals have been apprehended after illegally acquiring cryptocurrency.

Three individuals in Bulgaria have been arrested and charged after obtaining over $3 million (5 million lev) through illegal schemes. Prosecutors had been gathering evidence against the group since June.

According to local outlets, police found a trove of passwords and private keys associated with various cryptocurrency exchange services and wallet providers.

It is not clear what exactly the miscreants had done to obtain such a large amount of cryptocurrency illegally.

The 💜 of EU tech

The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol' founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It's free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!

However, local reports state that the criminals were using “innovative mechanisms, specialist software, and advanced knowledge in the area of cryptocurrency.”

Authorities also seized a car worth $35,000 (60,000 lev) that was bought using the pilfered cryptocurrency.

Despite cryptocurrency’s promise of anonymity, criminals are still being caught. Earlier this month, a group of eight Japanese men were arrested for running a cryptocurrency Ponzi scheme valued at over $60 million.

Get the TNW newsletter

Get the most important tech news in your inbox each week.

Also tagged with


Published
Back to top