Two Tomsk residents are set to stand trial for “large-scale theft” which included stealing thousands of rubles worth of cryptocurrency from a local miner. The authorities reported that digital assets were taken from the owner at gunpoint. They also said that both of the criminals are in custody.
Accused to Face Trial in Russia for Armed Robbery of Crypto Miner
Kirovsky Court in Tomsk is soon to try two men from a Siberian city who are accused of extorting money worth over 360 million rubles (or $4.8 million) from the crypto miner. Russian crypto news outlet Bits.media reported.
The incident took place in October 2021. As the victim was about to leave his home, he was attacked by the criminals. One of them threatened him with an object resembling a gun and then took him back to his home.
His accomplice then entered and the two forced the victim to log in to his crypto exchange account and transfer 86 BTC to them. It is not clear why they chose not to withdraw the entire balance.
One of the suspects was arrested and tracked down by police in St. Petersburg. He later pleaded guilty to the theft and returned the fiat equivalent to a part of the stolen digital assets: 35 million rubles (approximately $479,000 at current exchange rate). The second man was later apprehended.
The Regional prosecutor’s Office charged the attackers with “robbery committed by a group of people on an especially large scale” as specified in the Russian Federation Criminal Code. They face 15 years imprisonment and a fine of up to 1,000,000 rubles.
Cases of individuals owning and trading cryptocurrency are increasing in Russia. In July 2021, armed robbers raided a major mining farm near Moscow and stole numerous video cards which were used to mine digital currencies. Last year, $1 million in tether was stolen from a crypto trader in the Russian capital.
Do you think that crypto-related crimes, like these cases, will continue to spread with the popularity of cryptos? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
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