Crime

An Australian man has been charged after police linked the NEXOpayment portal to the suspected laundering of roughly $3.5 million stolen from 190 elderly investors.

The U.S. Department of Justice has seized roughly $400 million tied to the Helix darknet crypto mixer and finalized forfeiture of the assets after the conviction of operator Larry Dean Harmon. Harmon received a 36-month prison sentence.

UAE police say they recovered the bodies of Russian crypto blogger Roman Novak and his wife in a case described as an alleged kidnapping, torture and murder tied to cryptocurrency disputes. Authorities have opened a criminal investigation as inquiries continue.

Russian police arrested a young man after he threatened employees of a cryptocurrency exchange with smoke and airsoft grenades in an attempted robbery. Reports indicate at least one device resembled a fake grenade.

The UK’s Serious Fraud Office said on Thursday it is investigating the collapse of a $28 million cryptocurrency scheme and has arrested two men on suspicion of fraud and money laundering. The SFO has urged affected investors and witnesses to come forward as the probe seeks to trace funds and assess recoverability.

A Detroit man was sentenced to nine years in federal prison after secretly transferring Bitcoin to a federal informant he believed was part of ISIS. Prosecutors say the transfers were intended to support the extremist group.

Brazil has proposed a law to allow authorities to sell bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies seized in criminal investigations, aiming to cut off organized crime funding. The plan raises legal and market questions about custody, auction procedures and potential pressure on BTC prices.