Russian authorities are planning to sell around $100 million worth of Bitcoin seized from the Infraud hacking group, known for global credit card scams. The government will initially liquidate $10 million in BTC and aim to sell over 1,000 coins in total.
The stash was linked to Major Marat Tambiev, a lead investigator in the case who demanded a 1,032 BTC bribe from Infraud’s lawyer to protect the criminals from imprisonment. Tambiev was later arrested and sentenced to 16 years in prison, with his assistant receiving a nine-year sentence.
Authorities found Tambiev’s Bitcoin keys in a folder labeled “Pension” on his work computer, but legal hurdles are delaying the liquidation as the coins were spread across multiple wallets and given to family members.
Prosecutors are pursuing court approvals to access the remaining assets. The U.S. is also selling confiscated Bitcoin, with the Justice Department cleared to liquidate 69,000 BTC worth $6.5 billion, linked to the Silk Road marketplace.
However, political leaders like Donald Trump have called for a strategic Bitcoin reserve instead of selling government-held crypto.
Russian lawmakers are advocating for a similar reserve, backed by President Vladimir Putin’s positive stance on Bitcoin.
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