Bitcoin Robbed From Man At Gunpoint

Bitcoin has found its name once again in the crime reports, but this time, bitcoin had little to do with the crime itself.

Instead, a Craigslist posting that listed $1,100 worth of bitcoin for sale, led to a 28-year-old man being robbed at gunpoint, International Business Times reported yesterday (June 8). During the incident, which allegedly occurred May 27, the Brooklyn, New York man was reportedly ordered to hand over his bitcoins after he was pulled into a car and instructed to transfer his bitcoins from a bitcoin wallet to the robbers. The armed robber also took the victim’s phone, according to IBT.

And because bitcoins are difficult to track, the case could leave authorities stumped, as it will not be easy to trace precisely where those funds were transferred to. Not impossible, as we learned from the Silk Road case, but still much more difficult than if a person was instructed to transfer funds from one bank account to another.

The incident is under investigation, a New York City police spokeswoman told CNBC, adding that there was no video surveillance footage of the incident.

And while bitcoin has snagged its fair share of unique headlines, this incident is not the first of its kind.

Just months ago, a New York bitcoin trader was also robbed at gunpoint of $8,500 worth of bitcoin when he was asked to meet a person to buy bitcoins. This led that trader, Dean Katz, to describe bitcoin as “the Wild West,” saying that “stagecoach robberies are going to happen again,” reported the Observer.

And while not quite as personal as these robberies, bitcoin wallet company Blockchain also took some heat last week when it accidentally wired $8,000 worth of bitcoin (approximately 34 bitcoin) to the wrong address because of a security bug.

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