Ex-British police officer charged with stealing 50 bitcoins
Date: 2025-03-17 Author: Oliver Abernathy Categories: IN WORLD
Paul Choles, 42, from Bristol, has been charged with misappropriating, storing, using and converting bitcoins obtained by criminal means. According to prosecutors, he obtained 50 BTC during an investigation that is still ongoing. At the time of the alleged crime, the value of these assets was about 60,000 pounds sterling (about $77,000), but today their price has risen to almost $4 million.
The trial in this case is scheduled for April 25 at Liverpool Magistrates' Court. The head of the Crown Prosecution Service’s Special Crime Unit, Malcolm McHaffie, stressed that the National Crime Agency (NCA) is committed to protecting citizens from organised crime groups, but Choles, like any defendant, is guaranteed the right to a fair trial.
Last year, the NCA was given broader powers to seize, freeze and destroy cryptocurrency linked to illegal activity without having to arrest suspects. Investigators can now freeze digital assets and transfer them to accounts under their control.
Earlier, the British authorities tightened their grip on the crypto industry, recognising almost half of digital asset advertising as illegal. This was due to non-compliance with new requirements introduced by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in October 2023.
