Missing bitcoins from PJ: acquitted owners demand return and point to internal suspects
The couple from whom 9.72 bitcoins were seized by the PJ, subsequently acquitted, accuses authorities of ignoring internal leads and awaits the return of the assets.
Trail of missing PJ bitcoins reaches Canada, but couple points to culprits "closer to home"
Nearly eight years after 9.72 bitcoins disappeared whilst in the custody of the Judicial Police, the couple to whom the cryptocurrencies — valued at over 600,000 euros — belonged accuse the investigation of wasting time and ignoring obvious leads. "I do not see the courage to take the investigation forward," they tell CNN Portugal, whilst awaiting the return of the assets following their acquittal.
The trail of the coins has since reached a Canadian citizen, but the couple doubts the new lead. "I think the culprits are much closer, there is no need to go to Canada to find culprits," they state, maintaining that the "obvious suspects" are those who "had contact with the private key" within the PJ and the Public Prosecutor's Office.
Seizure in Vila Nova de Gaia and the disappearance
The case dates back to October 2018, when the couple's home in Vila Nova de Gaia was the target of a major operation by the Judicial Police — at the time described as the largest bitcoin seizure in the history of Portuguese justice. "We had a spirit of cooperation with the authorities because we had nothing to hide," the couple recalls. "They took whatever they wanted. Computers, my wife's wallets, televisions, everything they wanted to take."
Two specialists from the cyber-crime unit in Lisbon were called to handle the cryptocurrencies. Using credentials provided by the couple, the inspectors transferred the coins to a new wallet created during the operation and placed under PJ control. "I remember one dictating the address to the other, who wrote it on my computer, and that is how they made the transfer," recalls one of the parties. The private key passed through Judicial Police systems and was also printed out.
Four days after the search, the wallet began to be emptied through four transactions carried out on a Saturday morning, until the balance disappeared completely. The couple only learned of this years later, when they were called to the PJ and became suspects in the very investigation into the disappearance. "We felt total bewilderment," they recall. "I was even more bewildered afterwards when I realised that none of the other people who had contact with the wallet after it was seized were suspects and even less so accused persons."
Investigation stalled for years, resumed only at trial hearing
The disappearance created two fronts within the PJ itself: a criminal investigation entrusted to the National Cyber-Crime Combat Unit, placed under judicial secrecy, and a disciplinary process to establish internal responsibilities. The investigation reconstructed the path of the private key — who touched it, where it went and under what conditions it was kept — and sought to understand whether the couple had recovered, by any means, the seized money.
For years, the authorities knew that the bitcoins had reached an online casino, but did not request from the platform the data that could identify the account holder who received the funds. "They did not contact the casino," the couple insists. The situation only changed during a trial hearing, months before the acquittal in February 2025: the defence raised the disappearance of the coins again, and on that same day the PJ resumed the trail, contacted the platform and, four days later, received new elements for the investigation.
"It could have advanced in October 2019, if someone had sent an email, but since no one wanted to send an email in October 2019, the investigation went nowhere," the couple accuses. "Now, in February 2025, they wanted to send an email and then it did advance." The sequence became, according to them, "difficult to ignore".
Suspicions fell on the couple, without evidence
The investigative steps focused mainly on the couple. Their phones were tapped for around two months and bank accounts scrutinised, but no step found signs that the bitcoins had returned to their hands. In July 2021, they were nonetheless made suspects for suspicions of unlawful access and misappropriation. They then insisted that "the only way to carry out bitcoin transactions would be by using the private key," to which they guaranteed they never had access.
The PJ's final report recognised the limits of the investigation: "No evidence resulted regarding the movement of the bitcoin wallet." Whoever emptied it, the investigators concluded, "knew what they were doing" and possessed knowledge that "is not for just anyone."
Attempts to follow other paths abroad failed to identify the perpetrator. In June 2022, the Public Prosecutor's Office decided to archive the case, acknowledging that "it was not possible to conclude, with an objective degree of certainty" who allowed access to the private key or who moved the coins. Neither the couple nor any element of the PJ were charged with the disappearance.
Acquittal and waiting for return
The process that had led to the 2018 search and seizure of the cryptocurrencies continued to run separately. In 2025, the couple were acquitted of the crimes of aggravated money laundering and tax fraud of which they were accused. That decision became final on 15 September 2025, opening the way for the return of the assets — which the PJ and the Public Prosecutor's Office have yet to carry out. The couple awaits the authorities to comply with the judicial decision.
Source: CNN Portugal