Cryptocurrencies, which have been on the agenda recently with Germany’s Bitcoin sales, have come to the fore in the UK this time with a different altcoin. Authorities have seized the criminally acquired altcoin project Monero (XMR) from a drug dealer selling deadly “weight loss pills.” This was recorded as the UK’s first XMR sale. Here are the details…

Sale to privacy-focused altcoin project XMR in the UK

In one case in the UK, authorities seized the criminally obtained cryptocurrency Monero (XMR) from a drug dealer selling deadly “weight loss pills”. This made history as the UK’s first XMR seizure. This incident raises concerns about the need to tighten cryptocurrency regulations, once again raising the risk of cryptocurrencies being used for money laundering and other illegal activities. According to the incident, a 28-year-old British citizen named Jack Edward Finney benefited from Monero while selling DNP, an illegal drug pill. DNP was subsequently classified as a poison by the UK Home Office. Adrian Foster, chief prosecutor of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), made the following statement regarding the XMR seizure:

This is the first case where we have converted Monero currency into cash. This shows that criminals cannot hide their money in any cryptocurrency in the hope of keeping it safe from the authorities.

Andrew Quinn, Head of the FSA’s National Food Crime Unit, said: “We welcome the court’s decision to force Jack Finney to hand over the £23,000 he earned by selling lethal substances on the dark web. Whatever format the money is in, we will find and confiscate it.” said. The confiscated XMRs were converted into British pounds by British authorities. The sale took place through an undisclosed “cryptocurrency trading platform.”

What is Monero, which is delisted from exchanges?

Monero is one of the largest privacy tokens that hides the addresses and transactions of people in its network. Therefore, it has become a popular token that people use when they do not want their illegal activities to be monitored. Since Monero is a privacy-oriented cryptocurrency, it cannot be tracked or traced. Therefore, it is widely used by criminals to conduct transactions on the dark web.

Binance, one of the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchanges, announced that Monero (XMR) was delisted along with three altcoins on February 20, 2024. This delisting process was interpreted as an indication that Monero was frequently used for illegal activities. This incident in England once again brought to the fore the risk of cryptocurrencies being used for money laundering and other illegal activities. Concerns have grown that authorities need to step up their fight against such activities and tighten cryptocurrency regulations.

Jack Edward Finney was sentenced to prison for money laundering and drug dealing. The income from the confiscated Moneros was publicly donated to charities. This incident underlines that stricter regulations and controls are needed to prevent cryptocurrencies from being used for illegal activities. Authorities continue to increase cooperation with cryptocurrency platforms and develop new methods to reduce money laundering risks.

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