South Korean prosecutors say they recovered more than 320 Bitcoin that disappeared from government custody in 2025 after the cryptocurrency was returned to an official wallet this week, local media reported.
The Gwangju District Prosecutors’ Office said it unexpectedly recovered 320.88 Bitcoin (BTC), worth about $21.3 million at the time of writing, local media outlet The Chosun Daily reported on Thursday. Prosecutors confirmed to the outlet that the unknown hacker returned the stolen Bitcoin to the authorities’ cryptocurrency wallet on Tuesday, and it was later transferred to a secure domestic digital exchange wallet also controlled by authorities.
The Bitcoin went missing from prosecutors’ custody during an investigation in August 2025, authorities said at the time. Prosecutors later discovered the loss during a routine inspection of seized financial assets on Jan. 23, Cointelegraph reported. Authorities blamed the theft on a phishing attack after access credentials were exposed.
While the circumstances are unclear, prosecutors said they had sent cooperation letters to local exchanges requesting that they freeze the hacker’s wallet address, making it difficult to liquidate the stolen assets. They did not explain why the Bitcoin was sent back.
Related: Google Cloud flags North Korea-linked crypto malware campaign
Authorities continue hunt for hacker
Authorities said they will continue investigating the case to identify the person responsible and examine related phishing sites and malicious domains.
“We will do our best to arrest the suspect regardless of the recovery of the bitcoin,” the prosecutors’ office told local outlet Digital Asset Works.
Authorities are also carrying out additional investigations into phishing site operators and malicious domains related to the case.
Related: South Korean crypto CEO stabbed in court during Haru Invest fraud trial
Custody failures fuel scrutiny
The stolen 320 Bitcoin was recovered about a week after Seoul police saw another 22 Bitcoin (worth $1.5 million at the time) vanish from their custody from a cold wallet held by authorities, Cointelegraph reported on Friday.
Authorities said the 22 BTC was transferred externally, as the physical cold wallet was not stolen.
The revelation led to renewed scrutiny over the authorities’ ability to safeguard confiscated Bitcoin. A new investigation has been launched by the Gyeonggi Northern Provincial Police Agency seeking to uncover the individuals involved in the Bitcoin transfer.
The 22 Bitcoin were voluntarily submitted to authorities during an investigation in November 2021.
Magazine: South Korea gets rich from crypto… North Korea gets weapons
