- A New Jersey county has made $141,237 profit after selling seized cryptocurrency
- Monmouth County seized the crypto in 2018 and sold this week
- The sale marks the state’s first seizure and sale of digital assets
Public authorities the world over are, by and large, hesitant to hold cryptocurrency on their balance sheets, but as one New Jersey county has discovered, it certainly has its benefits. Monmouth County revealed this week that it made $141,237 profit after selling cryptocurrency it seized in 2018 as part of a drug bust, making it the first state-level agency to complete the forfeiture and liquidation of digital assets.
Drugs Bust Ends in Handsome Profit
The cryptocurrency was seized during a joint raid by detectives from the Gang and Criminal Enterprise Unit; the Narcotics Strike Force; and the Financial Crimes and Public Corruption Unit. Investigators executed search warrants at two locations in Long Branch and seized vehicles, cash, and drugs, also coming across financial documents that determined one of the suspects owned cryptocurrency on a United States-based exchange.
The cryptocurrency was consequently frozen and seized after it was determined to be the proceeds of narcotics distribution, with its value at the time being approximately $57,000. This cryptocurrency was held by the county for some three years until it was liquidated a few days ago on Coinbase for $198,237.31.
Cryptocurrency Gains Could Increase
While $141,000 might seem like a decent profit, New Jersey has another case pending which could yield an even better win. In 2017, Terry Kou was arrested on suspicion of fraud and was found to own cryptocurrency worth $200,000. Those assets are now worth $1.25 million, a nice windfall for the state when it is finally able to sell the coins when the case is closed.
