Detectives in Lincolnshire, U.K. have seized more than £2 million worth of bitcoin and other cryptocurrency as part of a money laundering investigation. The cryptocurrency seizure is one of the first and largest of its kind in the region.
A 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was charged with fraud by false representation and money laundering in connection with the investigation. He appeared at Lincoln Crown Court on October 26 and was sentenced to a youth rehabilitation order.
The teenager was arrested on August 14, 2020 following further investigations into intelligence reports received from Action Fraud and Crimestoppers. Intelligence suggested that the suspect was involved in credit card fraud and was stealing personal information to defraud a digital gift voucher company out of around £6,000.
Detectives later uncovered links to money laundering through cryptocurrency, which prompted further enquiries and resulted in the seizure of more than 48 Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
Cyber Crime Investigator Detective Constable Luke Casey said: “Cryptocurrency is often thought, by criminals, to be an anonymous way to move funds around undetected but I’m glad that in this case, we were able to highlight that the police are now able to effectively investigate offenses of this nature.”
Read more at Lincolnshire Police
