Australia's National Anti-Corruption Commission Accuses Federal Police Officers Allegedly Deleting Bitcoin From Trezor's Hardware Wallet

Illustration of Trezor's Hardware wallet. (photo: x @bitcoinlobo)

JAKARTA - A recent report reveals that Australia's National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) has accused a federal police officer of deleting 81.62 BTC worth of Bitcoin from a Trezor hardware wallet at the scene of a crime. Authorities rely on crypto tracking software to state that it is transferring Bitcoin to its own holdings.

According to the report, Australian police discovered hardware wallets during drug raids at a house in 2019, but waited about three weeks to get court permission to access them. However, after accessing the wallet, there was no Bitcoin at all, as federal agent William Wheatley allegedly transferred him immediately after the raid.

The hardware wallet is thought to have 81.62 Bitcoins, which were worth 309,000 US dollars (Rp4.8 billion) during the 2019 raids. However, currently the value is around 4.2 million US dollars (Rp 65.7 billion).

Detective Sergeant Deon Achtypis from the cybercrime unit indicated that initially the authorities suspected a member of a criminal syndicate was responsible for Bitcoin theft.

The objection came when the police also found a device containing key phrases for the hardware wallet, which is a series of 12 to 24 random words that can be used as a recovery method if the wallet is stolen or lost.

However, after a broad investigation into the IP address used to access the stolen Bitcoin using crypto tracking software, Achtypis allegedly found ties to Wheatley.

"I form the opinion that a member of the police may be involved in the cryptocurrency movement," said Achtypis.

Law enforcement authorities around the world adopt crypto tracking software to tackle illegal activities with digital assets.

Meanwhile, Wheatley insists not guilty of using his position as a public official for personal gain, theft, and involvement with the proceeds of crime.

He is reportedly ready to challenge allegations of Bitcoin theft from Trezor wallet. This comes amid Trezor's confession of a security breach affecting nearly 66,000 users.

On January 20, Cointelegraph reported that Trezor revealed unauthorized access to a third-party support portal on January 17. The company warned that individuals who had been interacting with the Trezor support team since December 2021 may have had their data threatened in the incident.