Seizure of Cryptocurrency for Forfeiture
What happens when a federal agency obtains a warrant to seize cryptocurrency for forfeiture? If your account was frozen because of an investigation by law enforcement or if your cryptocurrency was seized, then seek out the services of an experienced attorney focused on civil asset forfeiture.
Most digital currency exchangers, including Binance, are located outside the boundaries of the United States in order to avoid regulation and legal requirements. Some exchangers operated inside the jurisdiction of the United States including Coinbase and Huobi Global.
Regardless of whether the exchanger operates in the United States, it will still cooperate with investigations by law enforcement and freeze accounts upon request. If the federal agency obtains a warrant, then it complies with the warrant by sending the cryptocurrency to the United States government for forfeiture proceedings.
The Department of Justice just announced a new focus on seizing cryptocurrency for forfeiture. Specially trained agents and attorneys are learning more about how to seize funds in civil asset forfeiture cases involving these emerging technologies. You also need an experienced attorney focused on challenging these types of seizures and forfeitures.
Newspaper Articles About Forfeiture Abuses
U.S. Attorney Announces $3.36 Billion Cryptocurrency Seizure and Conviction
Attorney for Seizures of Cryptocurrencies for Civil Asset Forfeiture
If a federal agency froze your account for a law enforcement investigation or obtained a warrant to seize your cryptocurrency, then contact an experienced attorney for asset forfeiture proceedings.
We can help you determine the best way to cooperate with the investigation. If a warrant is executed to seize your cryptocurrency, then we can help to file a claim demanding court action. Filing the verified claim for court action triggers a 90-day deadline for the government to either return your property or file a complaint for forfeiture in the appropriate United States District Court.
If a complaint for forfeiture is filed, we can help you file a judicial claim, serve interrogatories and a request for documents on the government, litigate a motion to dismiss, or fight the case during a jury trial in federal court. Let forfeiture attorney Sebastian Rucci put his experience with federal seizures and forfeiture actions to work for you.
What is Cryptocurrency?
Fiat currency, such as a dollar of U.S. Currency, is created and regulated by the government. Digital currency, on the other hand, is defined as an electronic-sourced unit of value that can be used as a substitute for fiat currency, The government often uses the term “digital currency,” “cryptocurrency,” or “virtual currency” interchangeably. Bitcoin is one of the most commonly used and well-known digital currencies.
Digital currencies are similar to other types of currencies but do not have a physical form. Instead, digital currencies exist entirely on the internet. Instead of being issued by any government or bank, digital currency is created and controlled by computer software operating on a decentralized peer-to-peer network.
In the United States, digital currency is accepted for legitimate financial transactions. Nevertheless, the government might seek to seize digital currency for a civil asset forfeiture proceeding if it suspects it is used for conducting illegal transactions or for concealing or disguising the true nature, source, location, ownership, or control of illegally obtained criminal proceeds. Customers trade digital currencies for other digital or fiat currencies by using a business known as a digital currency exchanger (a “DCE” or “exchanger”). The DCE might be a brick-and-mortar business, but most operate entirely online.
Both brick-and-mortar and online exchangers accept a wide variety of digital currencies and exchange them for fiat and traditional payment methods, other digital currencies, or transfers between digital currency owners.
The DCE might operate outside the boundaries of the United States to avoid regulation and legal requirements. Some DCEs including Coinbase and Huobi Global operate within the jurisdiction of the United States.
Civil forfeitures laws permit law enforcement to seize property without a conviction and keep what they seize, this has warped law enforcement priorities and decimated public trust in law enforcement.
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