AFP Decodes Seed Phrase, Seizes Ghost Mastermind’s $9.3 Million in Crypto

The Criminal Assets Confiscation Taskforce (CACT) led by the Australian Federal Police has successfully seized $9.3 million in cryptocurrency as part of a wider criminal investigation targeting the Ghost mastermind.

For the uninitiated, Ghost is an encrypted communication platform used for criminal activities.

According to the official AFP press release, a 32-year-old man from Narwee was arrested on September 17 in connection with the law enforcement agency’s Operation Kraken and charged with multiple crimes, including support to a criminal organization.

According to reports, a CACT analytics expert managed to decode the suspect’s cryptocurrency account by deciphering its opening phrase, which eventually allowed the AFP to seize the assets. This is the second seizure linked to Operation Kraken.

The AFP further revealed that the successes of Operation Kraken include 46 arrests, 93 search warrants, the prevention of 50 life-threatening incidents and the seizure of 200kg of illicit drugs and 2, $37 million in cash.

The CACT, established in 2012, brings together the expertise of the AFP, the Australian Taxation Office, AUSTRAC and other agencies to locate and seize criminal assets. Since 2019, the task force has seized more than $1.1 billion in criminal proceeds.

In a statement, Acting AFP Commander Scott Raven said:

“The moderation of these assets shows the technical capabilities and powers that the AFP, and our partners through the CACT, are able to apply to organized crime. Whether you’ve tried to hide them in real estate, cryptocurrencies or cash, we will identify your illicit assets and take them away without leaving you with anything.”

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