- Senior officers within Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps have been implicated in the misappropriation of approximately $21 million in cryptocurrency
- The officers allegedly transferred digital assets from the seized accounts of the Cryptoland exchange into personal wallets, subsequently liquidating them for personal gain
- Key figures in this scheme, including Mehdi Hajipour and Mehdi Badi, reportedly amassed significant wealth through these unauthorized transactions
In a startling revelation, senior officers of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have been accused of embezzling around $21 million in cryptocurrency under the guise of conducting a corruption probe into the Cryptoland exchange. In a case that mirrors those in the U.S. and the UK, the officers allegedly diverted digital assets from Cryptoland’s seized accounts into their own wallets, profiting substantially from the unauthorized sales. The primary individuals implicated in this operation both hold senior positions within the IRGC’s economic intelligence division, showing the scale of the theft.
Cryptoland Spoils Proved Too Much, Say Court Documents
The controversy centers on Cryptoland, a digital currency exchange that ceased operations following the May 2021 arrest of its CEO, Sina Estavi. Initially, Estavi faced no formal charges, but his detention prompted over 51,000 investors to file complaints, as reported by Iran’s judiciary-affiliated Mizan news agency.
The situation escalated when, shortly after Estavi’s arrest, approximately six billion BRG tokens—Cryptoland’s native cryptocurrency—were transferred out of his wallet before the public was informed of any allegations. According to court documents recently reviewed by Iran International, these tokens were then sold by IRGC officers, generating tens of millions of dollars in illicit profits.
Unraveling the Embezzlement
A court-appointed expert identified Hajipour and Badi as central figures in the embezzlement scheme, with blockchain analysis revealing that wallets controlled by Hajipour alone processed over $21 million worth of BRG tokens. Prior to these unauthorized transactions, Hajipour’s assets were valued at approximately 10 billion rials ($40,000), but within four months, his wealth had surged to 600 billion rials ($14 million), which he reportedly used to acquire luxury real estate, gold, and high-end vehicles.
In March 2022, Hajipour was apprehended during a sting operation by IRGC counterintelligence agents. He was caught accepting a $10,000 payment from Estavi, who had been misled into believing he was repurchasing the stolen tokens from a third party—a fictitious identity fabricated by Hajipour himself. Following his arrest, Hajipour was detained in Ward 66, a facility designated for IRGC personnel.
The Net Spreads Wider
The investigation also implicated other IRGC interrogators, including four others accused of document forgery to legitimize the fraudulent transactions. Despite the severity of these allegations, details regarding the sentences for the defendants remain undisclosed, except for the rejection of Hajipour’s appeal in September 2022. In contrast, Estavi was sentenced to 15 years in prison and ordered to return the embezzled funds, despite evidence suggesting that the IRGC officers had misappropriated the investors’ money.
This case has cast a spotlight on the integrity of internal investigations within Iran’s security apparatus and raised concerns about the potential for abuse of power under the pretext of anti-corruption efforts. The case itself mirrors the actions of then-Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent Carl Force and then-United States Secret Service Agent Shaun Bridges who stole tens of millions of dollars worth of bitcoins from Silk Road during their investigation of it, as well as the British National Crime Agency officer Paul Chowles, who allegedly stole 50 bitcoins during a 2017 investigation into online organized crime.
