The United Kingdom Crime Cyber Crime Unit has revealed dumping over $19,000 in Monero tokens seized from British national Jack Finney, convicted of selling harmful loss pills.
Monero, a well-privacy digital currency that hides users’ transactions and addresses, has become popular among criminals, including Finney. Before his arrest, the 28-year-old man sold multiple drugs, such as anabolic steroids and Viagra, on the dark web. However, his decision to sell Dinitrophenol (DNP) put him in massive trouble.
Dinitrophenol is a harmful slimming drug that users take to boost their metabolism. According to a recent BBC research, the drug has caused the deaths of 33 people in the United Kingdom. The report found that four tablets of Dinitrophenol are enough to cause death.
“Recovering Monero Tokens Wasn’t Easy,” David MacFarlane Says
In a press release, Cheshire Cyber Crime Unit leader David MacFarlane explained that it was difficult to seize the Monero tokens from Finney due to the privacy features of the asset. As a result, the officers of the Cyber Crime Unit forced Finney to hand over the coins or face eight months more in prison. The culprit has been serving a 28-month jail sentence since 2021.
Besides recovering the Monero coins from Finney, the UK Cyber Crime Unit sold the drug dealer’s Suzuki Vitara car, believed to have been purchased using funds generated from the sale of DNP. However, the sale price was not disclosed. Moreover, the UK government did not mention the crypto exchange used to convert the seized Monero into British pounds.
Revealed: Sunak’s Government Wanted Seized Monero Burned
Before cashing out the XMR tokens today, the British authorities had been exploring various ways to handle the coins for three years. Earlier this year, Rishi Sunak’s administration directed the police to destroy (send to a burn address) the seized Monero tokens if returning them to circulation would pose risks to the public.
However, Chief Crown Prosecutor Adrian Foster said on July 12th that the UK Cyber Crime Unit opted to convert seized Monero to cash to show criminals that they can’t hide funds in privacy coins, hoping they will be safe from the government.
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