German authorities could have overlooked around 45,000 Bitcoins tied to Movie2K. This could mean that another $5 billion in Bitcoin could ultimately be confiscated and sold.
Arkham, the crypto intelligence platform said On Friday, it was discovered that more than 45,000 Bitcoins (BTC) were found. “still remains in wallets belonging to Movie2K,” What is it worth? “almost as much as the amount seized” Germany was the last country to do so.
German police seized nearly 50,000 BTC Just months after the price of cryptocurrency nearly doubled, it was sold in January 2024.
It was criticized for losing out on millions of dollars by selling Bitcoin at that time, but local laws required that they quickly dispose of volatile assets including cryptocurrencies in order to reduce the risk of a possible loss.
There are over 100 Bitcoin wallets that could be missing.
Arkham’s platform showed that the amount of Bitcoin in its new cache was 45,060 BTC. “connected to earlier Movie2K movements and addresses.”
“This is most likely still under the control of the Movie2K operators. It has not moved since 2019, and is split across over 100 Bitcoin wallets,” Additions
Arkham stated that German authorities did not mention the Bitcoins it found and they were not included in mid-last year’s sales.
Bitcoin currently trades just below $111,000 and the value of Bitcoin holdings is $4.99 billion. This would be worth almost $5.6 billion when Bitcoin peaked at $124,128 in mid-August.
Germany lost out on millions of dollars in sales by mid-year 2020
German prosecutors have sold 49 858 Bitcoins at a price average of $57,900 various sales The total amount of $2.8 billion will be earned between June 2024 and July 2024.
Bitcoin’s price soared by 75% in just a few months, from an average of $80,000 to more than $100,000. have valued The Bitcoin sold at more than $5 billion.
The Police seized the Bitcoin The authorities claimed the two men, whom they suspected of being the operators of Movie2K, had bought Bitcoins with the money they’d earned on the site.
It is called by authorities “the most comprehensive seizure of Bitcoin by law enforcement agencies” Ever made in Germany
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The prosecutors began selling Bitcoins across several exchanges starting in June. They confirmed that they completed their sales by mid-July.
The police would have to prove that new Bitcoins are illicit
Although it is not known yet how the German authorities will respond to Arkham, if police wish to seize Bitcoin they must prove that Movie2K was the source.
Local laws dictate that authorities will have to prove in court that the Bitcoin is of illicit origin — somehow tied to the defunct piracy site — before they’re allowed to seize it.
Even then, the police still won’t have control over the Bitcoin until the owner of Arkham’s 100+ reported wallets is identified and the ownership transferred.
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Source: cointelegraph.com
