A Sydney resident has been sentenced to 16 months in prison following an arrest last June after authorities were tipped off by a crypto company he had dealt with in order to deposit the stolen bitcoins.
The suspect pleaded guilty to seven counts of money laundering, one charge of identity theft and a drug offence – which probably led the judges to consider a more lenient sentence.
In order to withdraw a total of $43,350, he used his newfound identities to withdraw the money from various crypto ATMs provided by BitRocket.
However, BitRocket informed law enforcement that something fishy was going on in the wake of the first few transactions — leading to the man’s subsequent arrest while attempting yet another withdrawal.
His apartment was subsequently searched, where police found an insignificant amount of methamphetamine, as well as $6500 in cash.
Several Identities Used
Spokesmen for law enforcement have stated that as many as seven false identities were used by the suspect in yet another crypto money laundering case these past few months.
According to AFP Cybercrime Detective Acting Inspector Thomas Walker, the use of false identities can slow down police work considerably, since there is the risk of apprehending an innocent person who may not even be aware that their identity was stolen.
“Criminals are continually trying to identify new opportunities to profit at the expense of other people, but we are focused on identifying and stopping anyone who tries to cheat the system and defraud others.”
Although law enforcement representatives are not sure yet, they have reason to believe the Bitcoins were stolen back in 2019. Detectives are also investigating whether the man is part of a larger cybercrime group, or if he was a lone wolf.
So far, the alleged money launderer has spent a total of 9 months behind bars — and will be eligible for parole after 12 months in custody.
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