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Irish authorities seize $56M worth of bitcoins from a drug dealer

The Criminal Assets Bureau, a law enforcement agency in Ireland, has seized €52 million (~$56 million) worth of bitcoins from a drug dealer.

The agency received a freezing order from Ireland’s high court because the court accepted that the dealer, Clifton Collins, was involved in the sale and supply of drugs, local news outlet Irish Independent reported Wednesday.

The 49-year old Collins is believed to have invested in bitcoin at an early stage. Notably, the agency received the order "to ensure it could not be removed from its wallet without the court's approval," per the report.

The confiscation of the bitcoin reportedly formed a major chunk of the agency’s total seizure of €62 million ($67 million) worth of assets in 2019.