According to PANews, the UK Home Office announced in a press release that new regulations have come into effect, allowing police to confiscate cryptocurrencies used for crimes without first arresting them. This will make it easier to confiscate assets known to have been obtained through criminal means, even if criminals are able to protect their anonymity or are overseas. These new regulations were introduced after the UK Parliament passed the Crime Bill last year, which laid the foundation for faster confiscation of cryptocurrencies.
Chief Crown Attorney Adrian Foster said the new measures will go a long way toward helping to restrain, freeze or eliminate crypto assets from illegal enterprises. Officers will also be able to transfer crypto to wallets controlled by law enforcement agencies and destroy crypto assets if returning them to circulation is not conducive to the public interest. The press release noted that privacy coins are a type of asset and that confiscated privacy coins may be destroyed.
