A man involved in a violent robbery to steal cryptocurrency has had £110,000 seized by the Crown in a historic legal first for Scotland.
Prosecutors successfully invoked proceeds of crime legislation to convert and seize Bitcoin from John Ross Rennie, 29, as physical cash. He was convicted of possessing stolen goods after a man was coerced into transferring Bitcoin during an assault at a Blantyre home in March 2020.
Rennie received a community sentence for being the “technical brains” behind the robbery orchestrated by three men, although he denied participating in the assault itself. Earlier this year, prosecution lawyers brought Rennie to court under proceeds of crime legislation.
Judge Lady Ross sought legal clarity on handling cryptocurrency in such cases. At the High Court in Edinburgh, it was agreed that the 23.5 Bitcoin could be converted into cash, totaling £109,601.
During the trial at the High Court in Glasgow, evidence revealed that the victim was forced to transfer cryptocurrency after waking to find a man standing over him with a machete. A woman in the house was assaulted with a Toblerone bar and thrown into a bedroom, while one of the attackers made a “throat-slitting gesture” with the bloodied chocolate bar before fleeing.
Rennie was said to have played a “pivotal role” in providing technical expertise on how to transfer the Bitcoin. Police Scotland confirmed this was the first robbery in Scotland involving the tracing of stolen cryptocurrency.
Rennie’s lawyer, Marco Guarino, remarked, “It has been an unusual case throughout.”