UK Seizes First NFTs in $2 Million Fraud Crackdown – HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) in the United Kingdom has conducted its first non-fungible token (NFT) seizure.
In a fraud investigation involving 250 purportedly fake companies, British officials seized some cryptocurrency and detained three persons. “Our first seizure of a non-fungible token serves as a caution to anyone who believes they can hide money from HMRC using crypto assets.”
In an ongoing fraud investigation, the UK’s HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) announced on Monday that it had seized three non-fungible tokens (NFTs) and cryptocurrency valued around 5,000 pounds. Three more persons have been detained.
It was HMRC’s first-ever NFT seizure, according to the UK’s tax, payments, and customs authority. The digital art NFTs that were seized were not appraised.
250 purportedly fake companies are alleged of defrauding the public coffers of 1.4 million pounds ($1.9 million) in the continuing VAT payback fraud case.
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The individuals are accused of attempting to reclaim more VAT than they were owing. They employed “advanced tactics” to conceal their identity, according to HMRC, including stolen IDs, fictitious addresses, prepaid unregistered mobile phones, virtual private networks (VPNs), and phony invoices. They pretended to be conducting legitimate business.
HMRC’s Fraud Investigation Service’s deputy director of Economic Crime, Nick Sharp, said:
Our first seizure of a non-fungible token serves as a caution to anyone who believes they can hide money from HMRC by using crypto assets.
“We constantly adapt to new technology to guarantee that we stay up with how criminals and tax evaders try to hide their assets,” he said.
