Australian newspaper The Age this week reported that millions of dollars worth of bitcoin has been seized in a drug bust spearheaded by Victorian authorities.
Said report indicates that the Director of Public Prosecutions “obtained a restraining order” on the bitcoins from the suspected drug traffickers’ wallet some time in 2012-2013. This information came from the office’s most recent annual report presented on Tuesday in state parliament.
“Criminals have embraced the digital currency to transact in illicit goods and to launder money across borders, posing a challenge to law enforcement,” a part of the report reads.
It remains unclear whether the Australian government will outright sell or auction off the bitcoins.
Original article: Bitcoin drug millions seized in Victoria
It’s almost a replay of a similar situation that took place here in the United States late last year. A gentleman by the name of Ross Ulbricht was arrested at a public library and accused of administrating the infamous Silk Road illicit market place. He awaits trial, which is schedule to take place in January 2015.
Millions of dollars worth of bitcoins were seized in the take-down and subsequently auctioned off earlier this year by the U.S. Marshals Service. Investor Timothy Draper purchased all of the bitcoins that were up for auction in that round.
