How did the police officer end up becoming a thief

[Alvin_talk]

The police officer was reported that he used mixers to split the stolen bitcoin into smaller amounts, transferring the coins through crypto exchanges and prepaid cards to block the trace, but at last he was known.

https://cointelegraph.com/explained/how-a-police-officer-stole-50-btc-from-a-seized-crypto-wallet-and-got-caught

Some people may not know that bitcoin can be traced to someone if the government wants to trace it. This is not the first time such bad actors are known.

It's interesting to see how technology is used to expose a chameleon like this police officer, police by day and a thief at night. This will also serve as a lesson for those who believe they can they can commit fraudulent act with BTC and get away with it. Be wise and desist from fraud!

[ThemePen]

Most persons had continually have that notion that Bitcoin transactions are completely untraceable to the point where they finally spend it, but little  do they know  that this transactions can be followed up till they get tracked but mixers at a time did looked like they were going to come in the way of such tracking and tracing but I honestly do not know if they really do enough to not gwt any track able trace of the coin but if such coin is rather snet to an exchange that requires KYC , the chances continually remains high to trace the source and known the senders of the bitcoin.

With the government, there are some many possibilities that we may not be aware of which we not been aware of such is a security measure and that is why they are known only by the government and a few others so the tracing of Bitcoin and all of that is what the government can achieve, they have what it take and all the tools they .aye be needing  to carry that out actually.

That is common mistake is thinking Bitcoin is untraceable but every transaction is publicly recorded on blockchain which allows for tracking. But mixers were once which use to hide transactions but new tracing tools can mostly figure them out so they are not perfect way to stay anonymous. Also sending Bitcoin to exchange that asks for your personal information makes it much easier for authorities to connect your real identity to transactions. So governments have special tools and resources that give them big advantage in tracing digital money and fighting financial crimes.

[Pi-network314159]

Some people may not know that bitcoin can be traced to someone if the government wants to trace it. This is not the first time such bad actors are known.

I am hearing this for the first time that a transaction can be traced even the one that is done through mixer service. Maybe there could be some error along the line. Because I have heard much about mixer as a service that makes transaction untraceable no matter the gravity. And it's the most used service by scammers to do away with their fraudulent activities. Now if what you said is true then how come scammers has been stealing coin from different wallet everyday and net get cough?

[alastantiger]

Some people may not know that bitcoin can be traced to someone if the government wants to trace it. This is not the first time such bad actors are known.

Bitcoin is decentralized and if used that way there isn't anyway the government can traced back the transaction to you but the issue is that people make use of centralized services then they think the government won't be able to track them. We can't leave trace behind and expect Bitcoin to save us. The amount stolen is too much and will raise attention despite the currency the money was stolen in. When people thief this type of money, they don't stay low profile but begin to move the money almost immediately and this is why the government are always quicker to catch them because the transactions are being monitored. There are people that're stealing more than this but still haven't been caught because they're careful. You can't be committing a crime and still being careless.

[peter0425]

The police officer was reported that he used mixers to split the stolen bitcoin into smaller amounts, transferring the coins through crypto exchanges and prepaid cards to block the trace, but at last he was known.

https://cointelegraph.com/explained/how-a-police-officer-stole-50-btc-from-a-seized-crypto-wallet-and-got-caught

Some people may not know that bitcoin can be traced to someone if the government wants to trace it. This is not the first time such bad actors are known.

It is really not that surprising that a police officer stole bitcoins. Anyone can turn out to be bad guys but if you think that police officers are innocent country-loving servants then you are mistaken. A lot of police officers even turn out to be the most corrupt and most evil of the bunch. They usually are the root of the problem. Also if it is a low ranking official, I am not surprised if he needed money and he had to get it by stealing. It is ironic but not surprising. Everyone can see that bitcoin is a very profitable industry so even those who do not know much about it wants to profit off of it.

[Mate2237]

Some people may not know that bitcoin can be traced to someone if the government wants to trace it. This is not the first time such bad actors are known.

This is what most people don't know that all the KYC that you are required to do before getting your crypto exchanges done is stored somewhere and when there is a suspected criminal act is committed such as the one that is mentioned here about illegal transfer of crypto assets or even scam the state can use the law to let exchanges to provide the KYC details from exchanges to be provided


This is really an unfortunate situation that this officer has put himself because this is a letdown to his position as a police officer if he was really interested in Bitcoin he should have started to invest in Bitcoin starting small is not a bad one

[Findingnemo]

Imagine how many police officers have done the same with fiat and gotten away because of how anonymous and untraceable it is. And yet people, especially politicians and regulators have the gall to call Bitcoin money for criminals.

This is absolutely true, fiat can become untraceable when it is in the physical form and even today USD is the most used currency for illegal purchases on the domains, yet the same government claimed bitcoin is for criminals and they can hide if we let the people to use bitcoin as money.

In reality, they don't care about being used for illegal purchase but whether I can make money from it, with fiat they can just keep printing more and more so they just create it from nowhere but bitcoin isn't possible to create like that which scares the banks and the governments.

[HelliumZ]

If you leave traces before using mixers or after using mixers, you are visible by governments and they will find you, that's it. Privacy and anonymity are hard to gain as it is not achieved by a single action and moment but a long history of your actions over a very long time. It's like security, as if you have a hole on a very long wall of security, it can be exploited and a whole wall can collapse.

Similarly, if you left traces somewhere, other careful actions before or later that can not help you gaining complete privacy and anonymity.

The story reminds me of the hacker, Jimmy Zhong, who stole 51680 BTC from Silk Road. After using a mixer to mix the stolen coins whenever he wanted to move them, at one point, he mistakenly sent some portion to a centralised exchange where he had KYC'ed, and that was how he was identified. I'm guessing the police officer's case is almost the same. He must have linked his identity to the address before or after using a mixer.

Whether a hacker or a thief, while doing some secret work, he will make some mistakes that will be left as evidence. He did transfer Bitcoin from Silk Road, but his brain was not so good at judging that even if he did something clever, it would not have been possible to identify him.
He accidentally transferred some of his stolen Bitcoin to a central exchange where his documents were used to verify his KYC. That is, his identity was accidentally exposed. It was a mistake made by his brain due to an unexpected reason, which people make after committing a crime.

[retreat]

The police officer thought that using a mixer would erase the traces of his theft, but he didn’t realize that the government is now much more sophisticated and can, if it wishes, trace the flow of funds using the tools at its disposal. In this case, he even used exchanges and prepaid cards to facilitate his actions, making it easier for the government to track the transactions.
As the saying goes, “The higher a person’s position in law enforcement, the greater the potential or temptation to break the law.” So it’s no surprise that cases like this occur, and there are likely many more similar cases that have yet to be revealed to the public.

[john_egbert]

Imagine how many police officers have done the same with fiat and gotten away because of how anonymous and untraceable it is. And yet people, especially politicians and regulators have the gall to call Bitcoin money for criminals.

This is absolutely true, fiat can become untraceable when it is in the physical form and even today USD is the most used currency for illegal purchases on the domains, yet the same government claimed bitcoin is for criminals and they can hide if we let the people to use bitcoin as money.

In reality, they don't care about being used for illegal purchase but whether I can make money from it, with fiat they can just keep printing more and more so they just create it from nowhere but bitcoin isn't possible to create like that which scares the banks and the governments.

The difference is that fiat is their own turf.

BTC is everybody's turf equally.

[summonerrk]

The police officer was reported that he used mixers to split the stolen bitcoin into smaller amounts, transferring the coins through crypto exchanges and prepaid cards to block the trace, but at last he was known.

https://cointelegraph.com/explained/how-a-police-officer-stole-50-btc-from-a-seized-crypto-wallet-and-got-caught

Some people may not know that bitcoin can be traced to someone if the government wants to trace it. This is not the first time such bad actors are known.

I don't know what this fool was thinking when he did this. However, in the country where I live now, there was an even funnier story. One of the judges decided that he was very smart and began to take bribes in cryptocurrency. At the same time, when the investigation uncovered his schemes, they found on his work computer, right on his desktop, a folder called "pension".
He had 2718 bitcoins, equivalent to 7.3 billion rubles, and $1.5 million in bribes. And these are not just numbers, but a picturesque illustration of how a person can turn service to the law into a highly profitable startup.

[bakasabo]

Some people may not know that bitcoin can be traced to someone if the government wants to trace it. This is not the first time such bad actors are known.

I am hearing this for the first time that a transaction can be traced even the one that is done through mixer service.

I think in this story, the focus is not about mixer becomes tracible and their service is now useless. I dont think that he got caught after specialists traced mixed coins, but he got caught because he used exchanged and cards. Imo that is the moment when he has lost his anonymity or partly disclosed his identity. Finish of his laundering scheme failed and let authorities identify him. Or his lifestyle becomes suspicious and someone compared his income with expenses and started digging.

[betswift]

Some people may not know that bitcoin can be traced to someone if the government wants to trace it. This is not the first time such bad actors are known.

I am hearing this for the first time that a transaction can be traced even the one that is done through mixer service.

I think in this story, the focus is not about mixer becomes tracible and their service is now useless. I dont think that he got caught after specialists traced mixed coins, but he got caught because he used exchanged and cards. Imo that is the moment when he has lost his anonymity or partly disclosed his identity. Finish of his laundering scheme failed and let authorities identify him. Or his lifestyle becomes suspicious and someone compared his income with expenses and started digging.

Yeah, one right move and all they would need is to start digging it deeper and deeper, before, eventually, they will compile facts that would be enough to make their own move.

[snipie]

It is like everyone in the office has an access to the private address and can collect all the money without attracting the attention of everyone.
Regardless of the effort of the cop to hide his traces, he is still hovering around the area of the crime and will be among the most suspected ones and under surveillance.
The issue is not related to Bitcoin, these people could have access to other stuffs to steal and at the end they will get busted.

[KiaKia]

The police officer was reported that he used mixers to split the stolen bitcoin into smaller amounts, transferring the coins through crypto exchanges and prepaid cards to block the trace, but at last he was known.

https://cointelegraph.com/explained/how-a-police-officer-stole-50-btc-from-a-seized-crypto-wallet-and-got-caught

Some people may not know that bitcoin can be traced to someone if the government wants to trace it. This is not the first time such bad actors are known.

What many people don't know is that mixers are given the room to run on one condition, keeping users data aside just in case, isn't this why users are trusting mixers anyways? You can't get away with crime using mixers.

Im sorry I've to break this bad news to everyone, someone (a dev to be precise) tipped me off about this and that's why I don't see anything wrong with users using mixers but if your aim is to do some crime, not just any crime, a significant one, you will be caught.

We have so many gullible people among us in crypto space today, crime is better committed offline than online, there is no way you can hide completely, you can have the time to break into a server and install your infected code and get out, but it doesn't end there, you can't outsmart the government, they have all the tools and access to bring you to justice.

[Iroh]

I don't know what this fool was thinking when he did this. However, in the country where I live now, there was an even funnier story. One of the judges decided that he was very smart and began to take bribes in cryptocurrency. At the same time, when the investigation uncovered his schemes, they found on his work computer, right on his desktop, a folder called "pension".
He had 2718 bitcoins, equivalent to 7.3 billion rubles, and $1.5 million in bribes. And these are not just numbers, but a picturesque illustration of how a person can turn service to the law into a highly profitable startup.

I don't know what's more funny. Keeping a detailed record of his bribe taking on a folder ironically named "pension" or keeping all of that on his work computer, not that it would have made much of a difference if it was stored on his personal computer.
2718 bitcoins!! He must have been one hell of a corrupt judge for him to have racked up so many bitcoins. Lots of cases where he definitely gave wrong judgments. One of many cases all over the world where people tasked with upholding the law use their positions for their own selfish benefits. Quite sad but not entirely surprising.

[AmoreJaz]

It is like everyone in the office has an access to the private address and can collect all the money without attracting the attention of everyone.
Regardless of the effort of the cop to hide his traces, he is still hovering around the area of the crime and will be among the most suspected ones and under surveillance.
The issue is not related to Bitcoin, these people could have access to other stuffs to steal and at the end they will get busted.

Corruption is the main culprit of this act. If you are honest and has integrity, you won't resort to this illegal act.