Cops can’t access $60M in seized bitcoin—fraudster won’t give password

Officials in Germany have seized a digital wallet believed to contain $60 million in bitcoins obtained by fraudulent online activity. The original owner of the wallet was convicted of installing bitcoin mining malware on peoples' computers without permission and has served more than two years in prison. But the wallet is encrypted, and the fraudster has steadfastly refused to disclose the password protecting the 1,700 bitcoins.

"We asked him but he didn’t say," the prosecutor from the Bavarian town of Kempten said to Reuters on Friday. "Perhaps he doesn’t know." The value of bitcoin soared during the two years that the fraudster was behind bars.