A former officer of the United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency (NCA), Paul Chowles, has been ordered to repay £1.8m after stealing Bitcoin seized during an investigation into criminals operating on the dark web.
Chowles, 44, from Bristol, was jailed for five-and-a-half years by Liverpool Crown Court last year after pleading guilty to theft and money laundering.
The ex-detective was part of an NCA team investigating criminals who sold illegal goods online. During the operation, he helped analyse and extract cryptocurrency from digital devices seized from drug trafficker Thomas White.
White was jailed for 64 months in 2019 after he was convicted of selling illegal goods to criminal networks through Silk Road 2.0.
Investigators seized 97 Bitcoin from White, but later discovered that 50 Bitcoin had been withdrawn from the confiscated wallet.
The NCA initially believed White had somehow accessed the wallet while in custody. He denied any involvement.
It was later established that Chowles had taken the Bitcoin in 2017 and moved it through a series of cryptocurrency transactions in an attempt to conceal the theft.
Merseyside Police launched an investigation and arrested Chowles in May 2022. Officers recovered 30 Bitcoin from him.
His iPhone, which was linked to an account used to transfer the Bitcoin, was seized. Investigators also found notebooks in his office containing usernames, passwords and statements linked to White’s cryptocurrency accounts.
The Crown Prosecution Service, CPS, secured a confiscation order of £1,810,678.93 on Thursday. The amount reflects the sharp rise in the value of the 30 Bitcoin recovered from Chowles, which was worth about £36,000 when stolen.
Luke Clements of the CPS Proceeds of Crime Division said Chowles had exploited his position of trust for personal gain.
He said confiscation orders were an important tool for ensuring that criminals did not benefit from their crimes and that authorities would continue to pursue and recover criminal assets.
