Irish Drug Dealer Loses Access to €345 Million Bitcoin Fortune After Misplacing Seed Phrases

The Bitcoin, which was stored in 12 wallets, was confiscated from a drug dealer who alleges that the seed phrases were misplaced during a burglary.

A drug dealer's Bitcoin, valued at €345 million ($378 million), has remained inaccessible to Ireland's Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) despite being confiscated in 2019.

Clifton Collins forfeited around $56 million in Bitcoin in 2020 after the High Court of Ireland ruled it was proceeds of crime.

The Bitcoin was to be handed over to the CAB following the discovery of a cannabis cultivation operation at Collins' property, under the Proceeds of Crime legislation. A freezing order was put in place to stop its movement.

However, the CAB has been unable to access the Bitcoin, which is stored in 12 wallets, for the past four years, according to a recent report in The Irish Times. During this time, the price of Bitcoin has risen from around $9,000 to its current level of over $62,000.

Collins first invested in Bitcoin in 2011 with proceeds from his narcotics operation, when the cryptocurrency was trading between $0.30 and $29. Trading concluded in 2011 at $4.72.

He claimed to have concealed a document containing the seed phrases for his BTC accounts in a fishing rod case at a rented property in Co Galway. Collins alleged that the case was lost during a break-in at his home, though it may have also been lost during the clearing of the property following his arrest.

According to the CAB's annual report, Collins was able to reclaim assets valued at €1.2 million ($1.3 million), including 89 Bitcoin, a fishing boat, a Gyro aircraft, a metal detector, an electric bicycle and several motor vehicles.