Bitcoin case deepens in Czech politics with arrest
A $45 million Bitcoin donation accepted without checks has turned into a major Czech political scandal, now focused on money laundering and drug trafficking.
Czech police have detained convicted drug trafficker Tomas Jirikovsky in connection with a $45 million Bitcoin donation that triggered a political crisis earlier this year. Assets linked to him were seized in raids by the National Centre for Combating Organised Crime.
Prosecutors confirmed the case is now focused on suspected money laundering and drug trafficking, separated from a more exhaustive investigation disclosed in May. Jirikovsky, identified as the donor of 468 Bitcoin to the Ministry of Justice, was taken into custody in Breclav.
Former Justice Minister Pavel Blazek accepted the donation without verifying its origins. He resigned in May after revelations that Jirikovsky was behind the transfer. An audit later concluded the ministry should never have accepted the funds.
The scandal has shaken Czech politics, prompting a failed no-confidence vote and renewed calls from the opposition for further ministerial departures. Current Justice Minister Eva Decroix has pledged to release a detailed case timeline as scrutiny mounts before the October elections.
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