In 2012, more than 50,000 Bitcoin were stolen. Last year, the police were able to recover this amount. In 2021, the sum was still worth 3.4 billion US dollars. However, the locations where the cryptocurrency has reappeared are quite strange.
After 10 years, a huge amount of cryptocurrency has reappeared. It had disappeared without a trace in 2012, and the authorities had been frantically searching for the money. Meanwhile, the money has resurfaced in a particularly strange place.
Stolen money was hidden all over the house
How much money is involved? In total, it concerns 50,676 Bitcoin. When the theft began, the value of the Bitcoin was between 10 and 12 euros. The police confiscated the Bitcoins back in 2021, when the value of all found Bitcoins reached its peak at 3.4 billion US dollars.
But only now has the police operation become known. According to US authorities, this was the second-largest seizure in history (via bbc.com). At the current time (as of 9.11.2022), the value of Bitcoin is around 1 billion US dollars.
Where was the money discovered? James Zhong began stealing cryptocurrencies in 2012. He exploited a vulnerability of the darknet site “Silk Road” to steal Bitcoin on a large scale. “Silk Road” was known as a marketplace for illegal activities such as drugs or malware that is spread via Nvidia drivers. The site has since been taken offline.
The stolen funds were found on various devices that were spread throughout the house. The Bitcoins were also hidden in a popcorn can and in a safe concealed in the ground.
Meanwhile, Zhong has pleaded guilty in the USA; he faces up to 20 years in prison for the fraud.
Today, the stolen money is only worth one-third of what it was in 2021
Why is the money not worth as much anymore? Besides the 600,000 US dollars found in cash, the rest consists of Bitcoin. However, the digital currency has a highly volatile exchange rate and is significantly less valuable today than it was a year ago.
The 3.4 billion US dollars from 2021 are now only worth about 1 billion US dollars. That’s still a lot of money.
The highly volatile exchange rate also affects companies that trade in these cryptocurrencies. It has even gone so far that former crypto miners flood the market with cheap graphics card offers to at least partially cover their losses.
One bank has been hit so hard that it even had to close – plunging thousands of customers into despair:
Crypto bank missing 1 billion euros and closing – “I managed to ruin my life”
