- Federal police officer William Wheatley charged with stealing over $450k in bitcoin seized from alleged online steroid ring
- Bitcoin was seized from alleged dealer’s Trezor wallet during 2019 raid, but vanished few days later before being traced to officer’s bank account
- Prosecution alleges officer was cryptocurrency specialist called in to help identify seized wallet, used inside knowledge to steal and launder funds
A federal police officer has appeared in court this week accused of stealing over $450,000 worth of bitcoin seized from an alleged online steroid trafficking ring.
The Raid That Uncovered the Bitcoin Trove
In January 2019, Victoria Police and the Australian Federal Police raided the home of an alleged illegal steroid dealer in Hoppers Crossing as part of Operation Viridian. The raid uncovered large quantities of substances believed to be steroids.
Detectives called in the AFP’s cyber crime team after finding evidence that the alleged dealer had been accepting bitcoin as payment. The detectives soon located a Trezor brand cryptocurrency wallet on the premises.
Bitcoin Vanishes from Seized Wallet
Three weeks later, police gained access to the seized wallet, finding 81.616 bitcoin inside worth around $450,000 at the time. But just four days after the raid, the entire contents of the wallet were transferred out in a brazen theft.
Police Officer William Wheatley Charged Over Missing Bitcoin
The case was reopened in 2021 using new tracing tools, which raised the prospect that a police officer may have been responsible.
In December 2022, federal agent William Wheatley was charged with stealing the bitcoin haul. He allegedly transferred the bitcoin to two further digital wallets before the funds could no longer be traced.
Prosecution Alleges Bitcoin Funneled into Officer’s Bank Account
At Wheatley’s committal hearing this week, prosecutors allege some of the stolen bitcoin was funneled into the officer’s personal bank account.
Wheatley was a specialist in cryptocurrencies for the AFP’s cyber crime division at the time. A fellow officer contacted him for help identifying the Trezor wallet found during the raid.
The defense has argued the case against Wheatley is circumstantial. But if found guilty, the suspended officer faces charges of theft, dealing in proceeds of crime, and using information to dishonestly benefit himself.
