4 ms·

And he even said in his email that he assumed the feds would never pay as much as 100k so it had to be legit. I suppose the fbi can now recover the money and if

And he even said in his email that he assumed the feds would never pay as much as 100k so it had to be legit. I suppose the fbi can now recover the money and if they can’t they can just seize this guy’s property to make the government whole.

senectus1 5y ago
I doubt that getting the money back is very high on the feds priorities. 100k for an op isn't really that much. especially when it comes to subjects like this. now, I'm not saying it was worth it... I dont have all the details.
- irrational 5y ago
  I’m surprised you are being downvoted. I’ve seen events at my work that cost more than $100k. It’s literally nothing to large corporations and governments.
  - MattGaiser 5y ago
    They will spend far more prosecuting him than 100K.
  - senectus1 5y ago
    it's probably more about the last line of my comment. it was too reasonable :-P
- anonporridge 5y ago
  100k is probably significantly less than the salaries for all man hours involved in this operation.
elwell 5y ago
> if they can't That is a bit interesting for scenarios like this, the gov may not be able to reclaim even the unspent crypto; well it's not that different from burying cash somewhere and not divulging after being caught.
- anonporridge 5y ago
  If this guy was dumb enough to think he could get away with selling submarine secrets, I doubt he was smart enough to secure his private keys in an unseizable way, especially if the arrest was a surprise.
  - vkou 5y ago
    After you've been arrested, your crypto is no longer unseizable, unless you never want to leave prison again. If you're ordered to turn the money over by the courts, they can hold you as long as you remain in contempt of court. Rubber-hose decryption in general has a pretty solid track record.
    - john_moscow 5y ago
      In Russia we call it thermorectal crypotoanalysis. "Thermo" refers to a soldering iron.
    - anonporridge 5y ago
      Feeling compelled to comply with a court order and voluntarily relinquish your property is still very different from being seizable without your consent. Especially with the nature of civil asset forfeiture, in which many people never recover their money or property even after proving their innocence, unseizable property has it's appeal.
      - vkou 5y ago
        > Feeling compelled to comply with a court order and voluntarily relinquish your property is still very different from being seizable without your consent. The difference between theory and practice is that in theory, there isn't one. In practice, there is.
ClumsyPilot 5y ago
"he assumed the feds would never pay as much as 100k" You can't think small with these things, if he had real ambition and vision, he could be running Goldman Sacks!
gonzo41 5y ago
He obviously doesn't know what the military is willing to pay for a hammer!

senectus1 5y ago

I doubt that getting the money back is very high on the feds priorities. 100k for an op isn't really that much. especially when it comes to subjects like this. now, I'm not saying it was worth it... I dont have all the details.

irrational 5y ago
I’m surprised you are being downvoted. I’ve seen events at my work that cost more than $100k. It’s literally nothing to large corporations and governments.
- MattGaiser 5y ago
  They will spend far more prosecuting him than 100K.
- senectus1 5y ago
  it's probably more about the last line of my comment. it was too reasonable :-P
anonporridge 5y ago
100k is probably significantly less than the salaries for all man hours involved in this operation.

elwell 5y ago

> if they can't That is a bit interesting for scenarios like this, the gov may not be able to reclaim even the unspent crypto; well it's not that different from burying cash somewhere and not divulging after being caught.

anonporridge 5y ago
If this guy was dumb enough to think he could get away with selling submarine secrets, I doubt he was smart enough to secure his private keys in an unseizable way, especially if the arrest was a surprise.
- vkou 5y ago
  After you've been arrested, your crypto is no longer unseizable, unless you never want to leave prison again. If you're ordered to turn the money over by the courts, they can hold you as long as you remain in contempt of court. Rubber-hose decryption in general has a pretty solid track record.
  - john_moscow 5y ago
    In Russia we call it thermorectal crypotoanalysis. "Thermo" refers to a soldering iron.
  - anonporridge 5y ago
    Feeling compelled to comply with a court order and voluntarily relinquish your property is still very different from being seizable without your consent. Especially with the nature of civil asset forfeiture, in which many people never recover their money or property even after proving their innocence, unseizable property has it's appeal.
    - vkou 5y ago
      > Feeling compelled to comply with a court order and voluntarily relinquish your property is still very different from being seizable without your consent. The difference between theory and practice is that in theory, there isn't one. In practice, there is.

ClumsyPilot 5y ago

"he assumed the feds would never pay as much as 100k" You can't think small with these things, if he had real ambition and vision, he could be running Goldman Sacks!

gonzo41 5y ago

He obviously doesn't know what the military is willing to pay for a hammer!