Two former federal agents accused of stealing bitcoins have been charged with wire fraud, money laundering and related offenses, reports NPR. Carl Force, a formerly with the Drug Enforcement Administration, and Shaun Bridges, a former Secret Service agent, were part of a Baltimore task force investigating Silk Rod, the online marketplace often labeled the eBay of the drug trade. Force was given the task of establishing communications with Ross Ulbricht, aka “Dread Pirate Roberts,” the San Francisco man linked to Silk Road. Ulbricht was convicted last month of drug and conspiracy charges.
The U.S. Justice Department charged that Force created several online personas “and engaged in complex Bitcoin transactions to steal from the government and the targets of the investigation.” Bridges is accused of diverting $800,000 in bitcoins to his personal account. “The complaint alleges that Bridges placed the assets into an account at Mt. Gox, the now-defunct digital currency exchange in Japan,” DOJ said. “He then allegedly wired funds into one of his personal investment accounts in the United States mere days before he sought a $2.1 million seizure warrant for Mt. Gox’s accounts.”