Wiltshire crypto thief ordered to pay or spend longer behind bars
James Heppel, 44 has been ordered to pay back more than ÂŁ140,000 or face more jail time
A Wiltshire man who was jailed for stealing cryptocurrency from victims all over the world has been ordered to pay back more than ÂŁ140,000 or face more jail time.
James Heppel, 44, from Staverton in Wiltshire was handed the confiscation order at Bristol Crown Court on 6 June following an investigation by the South West Regional Organised Crime Unit (SWROCU). He now has three months to pay the order or face an additional 18 months in jail.
Heppel was convicted of three counts of conspiracy to commit fraud in May last year alongside Jake Lee, from Bath, who was handed a four-year sentence and a confiscation order for nearly ÂŁ1million.
Read about the conviction last may here
The pair carried out the fraud by spoofing the domain of online cryptocurrency exchange Blockchain.com to access victims’ Bitcoin wallets, stealing their funds and login details. In total, 55 victims in 26 countries were identified, with total losses of £5.7 million worth of cryptocurrency.
DS Matt Brain from SWROCU’s Regional Cyber Crime Unit said: “This additional money will add to the compensation received by the victims we identified in the case, including 11 in the UK.
“We have a team of financial investigators who work closely with the CPS to evidence how much money criminals like Heppel and Lee have made through crime, and to ensure the maximum amount possible is taken off them to pay that back.”
Heidi Leaney, Legal Manager for the CPS’ Proceeds of Crime Division, said: "James Heppel was involved in a sophisticated cryptocurrency fraud which caused devastating financial and emotional harm to victims across the globe.
“We worked closely with financial investigators in SWROCU to identify his available assets and secure this £140,000 Confiscation Order, which will go some way towards compensating victims. The CPS will always use the powers available to ensure crime does not pay, depriving criminals of their ill-gotten gains and ensuring where we can that monies are repaid to the victim.”