Authorities claim it is the largest bitcoin seizure in the country's history and demand the return of £5 million.
Seizure recorded after extensive investigation (Reproduction)
The UK government has confirmed a giant seizure of bitcoins, with 60,000 BTC under the custody of local authorities. According to a statement released on Thursday (22), it is the largest seizure in the country's history in digital currency.
The confirmation came with a decision from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), the prosecuting authority of England and Wales, which achieved victory on the last day. This is because the Southwark Crown Court issued a confiscation order against money launderer Seng Hok Ling, 47 years old.
He will now have to pay the sum of R$ 40 million (over £5 million) to the UK treasury, under penalty of having his sentence extended by eight years.
Ling is already serving a sentence of 4 years and 11 months for pleading guilty to possession of criminal property with cryptocurrencies. He confessed to participating in the money laundering of Chinese Zhimin Qian (Queen of Cryptocurrencies), a scammer who moved over £600 million after fraud in China.
This case resulted in the largest prison sentence in Bitcoin history in the UK, which is now awaiting the payment of more money in the case.
Binance collaborated with the restitution of over £5 million on behalf of the inmate.
The court decision brings a crucial detail about the liquidity of the seized assets. Most of the amount owed by Ling, exactly £5,417,995.24, is already in the possession of the police.
This is because the authorities revealed that the cryptocurrencies seized from him, including the contents of a wallet in Binance, have already been converted into British pounds. Therefore, the amount is already in possession for restitution to the authorities.
The remaining amount refers to funds located in bank accounts in the United Arab Emirates. For this portion, the court granted a deadline of three months.
If Ling fails to comply with the order in full, he will face a 'default sentence' of an additional eight years in prison, which will be added to his original sentence.
The CPS reinforced that, even if additional imprisonment is imposed, the debt continues to exist and accrue interest at 8% per year until fully paid.
The UK's Minister of State for Security, Dan Jarvis, said in a statement that 'This order sends a clear message: we will not allow crime to pay. Those who launder money through cryptocurrencies will be identified, prosecuted, and may be imprisoned if they do not pay. We will continue to work with our law partners to recover criminal funds and bring offenders to justice.'