Korean police lose 22 Bitcoins that have been seized and stored in cold wallets since 2021

Techub News reports, citing South Korean media outlet Dong-A Ilbo, that the Seoul Gangnam Police Station recently conducted an internal investigation and found that 22 bitcoins worth approximately $1.5 million had been transferred from a USB cold wallet. The bitcoins were handed over to Gangnam Police in November 2021, but due to a suspension of the investigation, the fund outflow was not detected. Although the USB device itself was not stolen, the bitcoins stored on it were successfully transferred. The Northern Gyeonggi Provincial Police Agency has launched an internal investigation to determine the details of the fund outflow and whether any internal personnel were involved. A spokesperson for the agency declined to comment further on the ongoing investigation.

This leak was discovered during a nationwide inspection of investigative agencies, which was prompted by a recent incident at Gwangju District Prosecutors Office involving the loss of 320 recovered bitcoins. According to local media, Gwangju investigators responsible for evidence management accidentally accessed a phishing site, resulting in the depletion of the recovered bitcoins.