Court Upholds Search Warrant in Cryptocurrency Fraud Case

A Cypriot businesswoman has become a subject of an international investigation into cryptocurrency theft, with French investigators estimating the damage at approximately $700 million. According to the investigation, since 2020 an international network has been operating through fake investment platforms: people were lured with offers of “profitable investments,” remote access to their computers was obtained, and funds were transferred, which were then laundered through a chain of accounts and crypto wallets.

French authorities passed materials to Cypriot law enforcement in which, among other things, a company linked to the businesswoman is mentioned. According to the investigation, about $500,000 passed through her structure under a suspicious scheme, and another approximately $6 million was transferred to other members of the network. The woman insists she is not involved in the fraud.

As part of the investigation, a Cypriot court issued a warrant to search the businesswoman’s home, office, and vehicles. Police получили право изъять электронные устройства, криптокошельки и SEED-фразы, документы по банковским операциям и бухгалтерию. The defense tried to cancel the warrant, claiming that the court made the decision “too quickly” — in about 15 minutes — and that the list of items to be seized was “too broad.” The lawyers also referred to the fact that the court had previously refused police in a similar request.

The Supreme Court, in considering the appeal, recalled that it does not assess the case from scratch but checks for the presence of serious legal errors. In its decision, the court noted that the materials received from the French authorities were detailed and described the scheme of the fraudulent network, and that the banking data did indeed link the businesswoman and her company to part of the suspicious transfers. The court concluded that the list of objects to be seized logically followed from the nature of the cryptocurrency and online fraud investigation, and that the speed with which the judge issued the warrant by itself does not indicate any violations.

Separately, the Supreme Court noted that the new police request contained more factual data than the previous one, therefore a different result — the issuance of the warrant — is considered justified. As a result, the businesswoman’s complaint was rejected: the search warrant was recognized as legal and remains in force, and the investigation through international cooperation continues.