No Charges for $2.9M Token Transfer, Rules German Court

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No Charges for $2.9 Million Token Transfer, Rules German Court

Written by Aaron S.,

Editor-In-Chief

Last Updated: July 30, 2025

Key Takeaways

A German man avoided charges after moving $2.9 million in crypto, as digital tokens are not considered "property" under German theft law;
The court ruled that "computer fraud" did not apply, since blockchain data could not be tied to false or unauthorized actions;
Other charges failed too, as judges said blockchain’s shared system made it hard to trace or blame individuals for data changes.

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No Charges for $2.9 Million Token Transfer, Rules German Court

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A German man accused of taking $2.9 million (€2.5 million) worth of cryptocurrency has avoided criminal charges.

The case, heard by the Higher Regional Court in Braunschweig, centered around the transfer of 25 million tokens. The man had helped the victim set up a wallet for a crypto project.

During the process, he reportedly gained access to the wallet’s 24-word recovery phrase, which allowed him to move the tokens into two wallets outside the victim’s control.

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However, under German law, theft only applies to physical items. Because digital assets like cryptocurrency have no physical form, the court ruled that they do not qualify as "property" under Section 242 of the Criminal Code.

The court also said "computer fraud" did not apply because there was no clear sign of unauthorized data manipulation for personal gain. Since blockchain transactions happen in a decentralized system, it was not possible to show that the transfer was made with false intent.

A charge of falsifying evidence was also dismissed. The judges explained that, on a public blockchain, it is difficult to identify the person behind a transaction.

The same issue came up with the "data alteration" charge. The court agreed that data had been changed, but said this change was carried out by the blockchain network itself.

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