Separation of assets: Thieves beat ex, take $10K and Bitcoin-stuffed tablet in Capitol Hill heist

Police say an early-morning apartment robbery on Capitol Hill netted a pair of thieves $10,000 in cash and a tablet tied to nearly $250,000 in cryptocurrency — a target the victim said was likely exposed after his estranged wife bragged about his finances to online acquaintances.

According to a Seattle Police Department incident report, officers were dispatched last Wednesday to a Capitol Hill apartment. The victim reported waking up around 4:00 AM to discover an unfamiliar man and woman stealing $10,000 in cash along with a tablet computer.

The victim told police the tablet held access to digital wallets containing 3.0 Bitcoins, valued at roughly $246,621, and 42.0 PI Network tokens worth about $3.30.

When the victim confronted the intruders, the male suspect punched him, and the woman brandished a knife. The victim pursued the pair outside toward Capitol Hill Station where he was punched again, shoved into a bush, and suffered a broken nose before the suspects escaped eastbound on E John in a black Dodge sedan.

Whether the thieves drove away with a quarter-million dollars or just a locked tablet is not clear. While the paper cash was gone immediately, moving cryptocurrency off a stolen device is not easy. Without passcodes, private recovery keys, or account logins, the suspects cannot access the funds—and if the victim still has those keys, he can simply transfer the digital money to a safe account before anyone unlocks the device.

The SPD report did not provide further details about the status of the victim’s cryptocurrency.

The victim told police that he believed his estranged wife had invited the pair into the apartment. While the victim maintained she was not complicit in the robbery, he believed her drinking and open boasting about his wealth prompted her social media acquaintances to target the booty.

According to the report, police may have encountered the suspects during a related contact earlier that day.

There were no immediate arrests.

$5 A MONTH TO HELP KEEP CHS PAYWALL-FREE

Subscribe to CHS to help hire writers and photographers to cover the neighborhood. CHS is a pay what you can community news site with no required sign-in or paywall. To stay that way, we need you. Become a subscriber to help us cover the neighborhood for $5 a month — or choose your level of support