A Russian criminal court has refused issuing a judgment in favor of a victim whose Bitcoin (BTC) holdings were forcibly swindled from him, citing that the numero uno digital currency is not entitled to receive the same kind of consideration as other assets.
The case which dates back to 2018 is about two men who pretended as Federal Security Service (FSB) agents and their partners in crime abducted the victim and compelled him to give 5 million rubles (~$90,000) in cash and 99.7 BTC worth roughly $900,000 during that time. Eventually, the abductors were jailed for eight and ten-years.
As a portion of the trial, the victim petitioned the court to pass a judgment forcing the looters to reimburse the funds stolen from him. The court passed a decree asking the thieves to repay the 5 million rubles.
However, with regards to the stolen cryptos, the court announced that it will not be able to accept the request as digital currencies are not endorsed by Russian laws as legal tender.
The victim may file a revision petition in a civil court. Irrespective of any future judicial proceedings, the judgment is considered to be noteworthy as it primarily concludes that Bitcoin swindling is not an offense.
