From Fishing Rods to Riches: Ireland Recovers $32M in ‘Lost’ Bitcoin from 2019 Case
On Tuesday, The Irish Times reported that Irish investigators achieved a massive technical breakthrough by gaining access to a dormant wallet containing 500 BTC, valued at roughly $32 million (€30 million). This single victory marks the first successful entry into a hoard of 6,000 bitcoin seized from former beekeeper turned cannabis mogul Clifton Collins back in 2019.
For years, the CAB sat on a digital goldmine they simply couldn’t touch. Collins, showing a penchant for old-school security, had diversified his illicit earnings across 12 different virtual addresses to protect his “honey” from prying eyes.
The story of how the keys were lost has become the stuff of crypto-legend. The Irish Independent also reported on the CAB’s success. Btcparser.com discovered the 500 movement from a wallet first created in 2016. Collins reportedly printed his private keys on an A4 piece of paper and stashed the document inside the aluminum cap of a fishing rod case at his rented County Galway property.
Luck ran out for the beekeeper in 2017 following a routine patrol arrest, and while he was cooling his heels, his landlord had the property cleared out. Reports say workers at a local dump recalled seeing discarded fishing gear, but the paper—and the keys to a fortune—were shipped off to Germany and China to be incinerated.
The resulting lockout left both Collins and the Irish state staring at a screen they couldn’t bypass for seven long years. During that time, the “lost” coins did what bitcoin has done over the years: they appreciated by 17,815% against the U.S. dollar.
While the assets were worth a mere $9,000 per coin during the 2019 seizure, the current market climate has sent the total value of the 6,000 BTC soaring to approximately $378 million (€360 million). It seems even dormant bitcoins can’t help but grow in value while sitting in a landfill-bound rod case.
The recent breakthrough wasn’t a stroke of luck, but a high-tech offensive supported by Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre. The agency provided the CAB with high-level technical expertise and decryption resources to finally bypass the security of the first wallet.
With one of the 12 wallets now wide open, the Irish state has secured its first $32 million slice of the pie. Investigators are now optimistic that the same technological “skeleton key” used for this wallet can be applied to the remaining 11 addresses. Bitcoin.com News discovered that the 500 BTC transferred today was sent to Coinbase.
Should the CAB successfully drain the remaining 11 wallets, the total haul would dwarf the value of every other asset typically seized and sold by the bureau combined. It’s a far cry from the small-time seizures Collins initially surrendered.
Back in the early days of the case, Collins gave up roughly €1.2 million in accessible assets, including a private plane, a camper van, a fishing boat, and about €1 million in Bitcoin from separate, unlocked accounts. Those figures now look like pocket change compared to the $378 million currently on the line.
The High Court in Dublin has already ruled that these bitcoin accounts are the proceeds of crime and are officially forfeited to the state. For now, the Irish government is holding a winning lottery ticket that just needs a few more codes to fully cash out.
The CAB’s persistence proves that in the world of crypto-forfeiture, being “lost” is often just a temporary state of being—provided you have Europol on speed dial.
FAQ 🔎
- How did Irish authorities gain access to the seized Bitcoin?
Investigators utilized high-level technical expertise and decryption resources provided by Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre to unlock the first of 12 wallets. - What is the total value of the Bitcoin seized from Clifton Collins? The total hoard consists of 6,000 BTC, which has appreciated to an estimated value of $378 million (€360 million) as of March 2026.
- Why was the Bitcoin inaccessible for seven years?
The private keys were printed on a piece of paper hidden in a fishing rod case that was accidentally discarded and incinerated after the owner’s arrest. - Will the Irish government be able to recover the remaining 5,500 Bitcoin?
Authorities remain hopeful that the successful breakthrough on the first 500 BTC wallet can be replicated across the remaining 11 encrypted addresses.
