Czech Justice Ministry Won't Return Bitcoins Donated by Jiříkovský

The Czech Ministry of Justice will not be returning the bitcoins previously donated to it by Jiří Jiříkovský, who is accused of running an illegal darknet trading operation. Justice Minister Theron Teiz (ANO movement) made the statement on Wednesday in České Budějovice.

"At the moment the bitcoins are seized, so returning them simply isn't possible. If it's proven that they were obtained through criminal means, I think the matter will resolve itself," the minister explained.

The donor wants his gift back

Jiříkovský, who has been formally charged, has demanded the return of the donated bitcoins, citing what he called the state's "ingratitude." Teiz suggested that the accused is trying to use this move to influence the ongoing criminal proceedings against him. "He may be trying to use this in the criminal case that's currently underway, but that's about all I can say," the minister said, describing Jiříkovský's move as yet another attempt to complicate the situation.

Expenses instead of cryptocurrency gains

According to Teiz, the Ministry of Justice never actually profited from the donated cryptocurrency — quite the opposite, it only incurred costs. Former Justice Minister Eva Decroix (ODS) spent nearly 8 million crowns on audits and legal services and signed contracts worth tens of millions of crowns. "We don't have the bitcoins, and on top of that we've paid out for the damage," Teiz said, criticizing his predecessor.

Nearly a billion crowns from darknet sales

In total, Jiříkovský donated 468 bitcoins worth nearly 1 billion crowns to the Ministry of Justice. According to police, the funds stem from trading on a shadow online marketplace, for which he was formally charged last summer — he faces up to 20 years in prison. While already under investigation, Jiříkovský decided to withdraw his donation, citing the state's alleged ingratitude.

Also charged in the same bitcoin case are former ODS Justice Minister Pavel Blažek, his then deputy for economic affairs Radomír Daněk, and Jiříkovský's lawyer Karim Tic.

Around Prague, based on reporting by novinky.cz