Sweden’s government has returned bitcoins worth more than $1.5m to a drug trafficker

The Swedish government has returned more than $1.5m in Bitcoin to a drug trafficker after the value of the cryptocurrency rose sharply while he was in prison. This is reported by The Telegraph.

Two years ago, law-enforcement authorities seized from the defendant, whose name is not disclosed, 36 BTC valued at 1.3 million Swedish kronor (about $100 000) at the time. Prosecutor Tuve Kullberg justified her position by using the fiat equivalent of the cryptocurrency.

By the time the seized assets reached auction, their value had risen so much that, to satisfy the court order, the bailiffs needed to sell only 3 BTC. The remaining cryptocurrency is to be returned to its rightful owner.

Kullberg described the situation as regrettable and admitted that the approach she chose to argue her case “was largely unsuccessful.” She also stressed that as digital assets spread, prosecutors should train staff to handle innovative tools.

“The higher we raise our level of knowledge, the fewer mistakes we will make,” she said.

Earlier, Finnish customs announced a tender among brokers for the sale of confiscated cryptocurrency.