Monmouth, a county in New Jersey, has disclosed significant gains from forfeiting and liquidating bitcoins that it seized from convicted criminals.
The bitcoins were seized in 2018 when authorities busted an illegal narcotics distribution operation and filed a forfeiture complaint after the suspect pleaded guilty to several charges.
At the time, the bitcoins were worth approximately $57,000. However, bitcoin’s meteoric bull run last year made the seized assets worth a lot more. According to an announcement from the Prosecutor’s office in Monmouth, the agency realized $198,000 from liquidating the bitcoins, representing an over three-fold increase.
Commenting on the enforcement action, Prosecutor Christopher Gramcioni said his agency leads from the front on innovative law enforcement strategies and practices necessary in the emerging new crypto world.”
The successful conviction of the criminals and forfeiture of the assets would serve as “an effective template for the state law enforcement agencies in the cryptocurrency market – a place where we can expect proceeds from crimes to continue to be concealed,” Gramcioni said.
Interestingly, the county has another bag of crypto assets obtained from its first crypto-related enforcement action in 2017.
Labeled, “Operation Plastic Army” the county seized $200,000 worth of cryptocurrency and arrested 16 individuals who were found guilty of defrauding some financial institutions. The seized assets are understood to be worth over $1.2 million at today’s price, and the county is yet to liquidate.
The inherently appreciative nature of Bitcoin and crypto assets makes it an interesting asset for both individuals and governments, with the Monmouth County Prosecutor’s office growing its treasury holdings by simply hanging onto seized cryptocurrencies.
Despite a mild correction in the past week, Bitcoin is still 85% up on the year-to-date (YTD) chart, with the yearly chart posting an even more impressive 500% gain. Thanks to the massive uptake of Bitcoin by corporate and institutional investors, and the rise of decentralized finance (DeFi), the entire cryptocurrency market is worth over $2 trillion.
