Australian police crack seed phrase to seize $6.4 million in cryptocurrency

Australian Federal Police (AFP) seized $6.4 million in cryptocurrency from a suspect linked to organised crime by cracking his seed phrase.

According to the official announcement on Oct. 2, the AFP reportedly accessed the suspect’s cryptocurrency by deciphering a seed phrase found during an investigation.

The suspect, Jay Je Yoon Jung, is the alleged creator of an encrypted messaging app called “Ghost,” which the police claim to be a tool used by criminal networks for illegal activities.

Jung was arrested on Sep. 17 and faces multiple charges, including supporting a criminal organisation. Authorities allege that he created the Ghost app exclusively for criminal use, enabling activities such as drug trafficking, money laundering, and contract killings.

The app was sold through modified smartphones along with six months of access and technical support for $1,600.

Jung also reportedly provided regular software updates to Ghost, and investigators had to infiltrate and infect the app to gain access to its contents.

Jung’s crypto stash was seized alongside other devices and assets during a raid on his home by the AFP’s Criminal Assets Confiscation Taskforce (CACT). 

This was the second time assets had been seized from Jung as a part of Operation Kraken, a wider investigation into his operations.

During the first raid in August, $1.4 million in cryptocurrency and properties were confiscated.

The AFP has yet to disclose how the seed phrase was deciphered, citing that the matter remains before the courts.

They also withheld details of the digital devices recovered from Jung’s residence during the raid.

According to the agency, the deciphered seed phrase allowed investigators to transfer the cryptocurrency into secure police storage, with the funds expected to be handed over to a government-controlled address later for potential use in law enforcement operations.

Crypto crackdowns across the globe

This seizure is part of a global crackdown on crypto use in criminal activities, with authorities across various jurisdictions warning about the growing role of cryptocurrencies in money laundering and other illegal schemes.

For instance, last week, Swedish police labelled certain cryptocurrency exchanges as “professional money launderers” following an investigation into unlicensed providers.

According to the Swedish Police Authority and the Financial Intelligence Unit, these exchanges made it easier for criminals to launder funds.

In a related case in the U.S., the Department of Justice seized three cryptocurrency exchanges linked to Russian money laundering operations on Sep. 27.

The platforms—UAPS, PM2BTC, and Cryptex—allegedly handled over $800 million in illegal transactions, including those related to ransomware and drug trafficking on the dark web. 

Earlier this month, German authorities shut down 47 cryptocurrency exchanges involved in money laundering.

The exchanges had failed to comply with legal requirements such as user identity verification, enabling criminals to convert illicit funds while maintaining anonymity.

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