Australian cop allegedly steals 81 Bitcoin during drug raid

Cop steals Bitcoin:  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 time of incident. Authorities purportedly used crypto tracing software to assert that officer transferred Bitcoin into his own possession.

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

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

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

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

Law enforcement agencies globally are increasingly opting crypto tracing software to combat illicit activities involving digital assets. In August 2023, Canian police announced option 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, ft, and involvement with proceeds of crime. He intends to contest allegations pertaining to stolen Bitcoin from 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 ir support team since December 2021 of potential data compromise.