Australian cop allegedly steals 81 Bitcoin during drug raid

Cop steals Bitcoin: The National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) of Australia has levied accusations against a federal police officer for allegedly erasing a Trezor hardware wallet containing 81.62 Bitcoin (BTC), valued at $51,597 per coin at the time of the incident. Authorities purportedly used crypto tracing software to assert that the officer transferred the Bitcoin into his own possession.

As per recent disclosures, Australian police discovered the hardware wallet during a drug raid at a residence. However, they waited approximately three weeks to acquire court authorisation to access it. Upon accessing the wallet, it was purportedly empty, with federal agent William Wheatley accused of transferring the contents shortly after the raid.

Valued at $309,000 during the 2019 raid, those Bitcoin now value approximately $4.2 million.

Detective Sergeant Deon Achtypis of the cybercrime squad suggested that initial suspicions pointed towards an associate of the crime syndicate as the perpetrator of the Bitcoin theft. The suspicion arose alongside the discovery of a device containing the seed phrase to the hardware wallet, a sequence of 12 to 24 random words used for recovery in case of theft or loss.

However, an investigation using crypto tracing software allegedly revealed a connection to Wheatley through the IP addresses associated with the stolen Bitcoin.

Law enforcement agencies globally are increasingly adopting crypto tracing software to combat illicit activities involving digital assets. In August 2023, the Canadian police announced the adoption of Chainalysis Reactor software to aid in tracing illicit crypto transactions.

Improvements in crypto detective technology have led to a higher rate of recovery of stolen crypto. In 2023 alone, over $674 million was reportedly recovered from more than 600 large-scale crypto hacks.

Meanwhile, Wheatley has maintained his innocence against charges of exploiting his position for personal gain, theft, and involvement with proceeds of crime. He intends to contest the allegations pertaining to the stolen Bitcoin from the Trezor wallet, amidst Trezor's acknowledgment of a security breach affecting nearly 66,000 users. 

Trezor disclosed unauthorised entry into a third-party support portal on January 17, warning individuals who engaged with their support team since December 2021 of potential data compromise.