📰 New article from TorrentFreak
IPTV Pirate’s Bitcoin Booty Sold at Auction For Just Over $1 Million
https://torrentfreak.com/iptv-pirates-bitcoin-booty-sold-at-auction-for-more-than-1m-251209/
Here’s the punchy, newsletter-ready version:
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He ran a pirate IPTV empire… and then lost his Bitcoin stash in an auction.
Meet the Swedish guy who turned Viking IPTV into a household name—complete with €75,000 Italian kitchens and 308 BTC in profits. He thought he was untouchable. Turns out, the Swedish authorities had other ideas.
After a 2024 conviction for copyright crimes (and a cheeky “I made 12 million kronor/year” boast to the press), his stash of 12.7 BTC was seized. Not just any crypto—this was real loot from thousands of subscribers paying in Bitcoin to stream the latest Hollywood blockbusters… for free.
The kicker? He appealed. Then he dropped it.
So Sweden’s Enforcement Authority did what any good government does with digital bootleg cash: auctioned it off. And boom—$1.02 million in one go. A record for crypto seizures in Sweden, they’re calling it.
No movie studios got paid. No victims compensated. But the Swedish state? They just bought a fancy new crypto wallet.
Moral of the story: If you’re gonna pirate, at least don’t leave your Bitcoin in a wallet with your name on it. Or buy a kitchen before you cash out.
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