U.S. Seeks Forfeiture of Cryptocurrencies and Bank Funds Tied to Darknet Drug Sales
On Wednesday, May 14, 2025, the United States government filed a forfeiture complaint in the US District Court for the Western District of Missouri, targeting various assets linked to illegal drug trafficking.
The complaint seeks to seize approximately 118.56885425 Bitcoin held in an FBI cryptocurrency wallet, 15.7 Bitcoin in another wallet, 147 Bitcoin Cash, 147 Bitcoin Gold, 147 Bitcoin Satoshi Vision, and all funds in two USAA Federal Savings Bank accounts and a Kraken cryptocurrency exchange account.
The complaint alleges the assets are proceeds from illegal cannabis sales conducted on darknet marketplaces, including Silk Road 2.0 and Agora. The properties, referred to as the “Defendant Properties,” are subject to forfeiture under federal laws related to controlled substances and money laundering.
According to the filing, the assets are traceable to a deceased individual, identified as T.R., who cultivated cannabis in Philo, California, and sold it illegally on darknet platforms. Customers paid T.R. in Bitcoin, which he transferred to various cryptocurrency wallets, sometimes using Bitcoin Fog, a darknet-based service designed to obscure the source of Bitcoin transactions. Bitcoin Fog, operational from 2011 until its shutdown by US law enforcement in April 2021, processed over 1.2 million Bitcoin, valued at approximately $335.8 million at the time.
The complaint details that T.R.’s Bitcoin and forked currencies, including Bitcoin Cash, Bitcoin Gold, and Bitcoin Satoshi Vision, were stored in a cold storage wallet on his laptop. After his death, his family in the Western District of Missouri took possession of the laptop. In 2019, a digital wallet containing hundreds of Bitcoin and forked currencies was discovered. Some Bitcoin was cashed out between October and December 2019 and deposited into USAA checking and savings accounts. Other portions were transferred to a Kraken account. In February 2024, T.R.’s family consented to transferring approximately 118.56885425 Bitcoin to an FBI wallet for safekeeping.
The government claims the assets are subject to forfeiture as proceeds of controlled substance distribution and money laundering, citing violations of the Controlled Substances Act and federal money laundering statutes.
The complaint requests that the court order the forfeiture of these properties to the United States and cover the government’s costs in the action.
Please contact BlockTribune for access to a copy of this filing.
