According to a press release issued on Feb. 16 by Norway’s National Economic and Environmental Crime Investigation and Prosecution Authority (Økokrim), authorities have confiscated NOK 60 million ($5.85 million) in stolen cryptocurrencies linked to the latest Axie Infinity Ronin Bridge hack. . March. According to Senior Attorney Bender,
“Økokrim is good at tracking cash flow. This case shows that we also have a great ability to track money on the blockchain, even if criminals use advanced methods.”
According to Bender, Okokrim worked with agents from the FBI and the US Department of Justice to trace the stolen digital assets. “We as a society are stronger in the fight against profit-driven digital crime,” she said. “This is money that can support North Korea and its nuclear weapons program. Therefore, it was important to track the cryptocurrency and try to stop it. money when they try to withdraw it in physical value.” The US Department of Justice named the North Korean-backed Lazarus group as the mastermind behind the attack last April.
Authorities say Sky Mavis, creator of the Axie Infinity NFT game and Ronin Bridge, will be notified of the arrest so that affected users will “refund money to the fullest extent possible.” After a hack worth over $600M at the time of the incident, Axie Infinity reopened its Ronin Bridge in June 2022 after its founders, along with outside investment from Binance, refunded users a total of 117,600 ETH and $25.5M United States in coins (USDC). The remaining 56,000 ETH of the stolen ETH was held by the Axie DAO Treasury and remains unsecured as Sky Mavis is “cooperating with law enforcement to recover the funds.”
Credit : cointelegraph.com
