The Florida teenager, Graham Ivan Clark, who stands accused of hacking Twitter last month, has more than $3 million worth of bitcoin assets. According to the Tampa Bay Times report on Sunday, Clark’s attorney David Weisbrod informed the assets in a court hearing on Saturday. Clark has 300 bitcoin (currently worth about $3.35 million), the attorney revealed. Prosecutors claimed that the bitcoin must be illegally obtained, given Clark’s “conduct,” referring to the Twitter hack.
Clark was the subject of a criminal investigation last year.
Clark’s attorney denied the claims made by prosecutors, saying that Clark was the subject for a criminal investigation last year, and at the time, prosecutors seized about $15,000 in cash and 400 bitcoin from Clark. Prosecutors then declined to charge Clark at the time and returned him the cash and 300 bitcoin. Weisbrod argued that it legitimizes that bitcoin. “I can think of no greater indication of legitimacy than law enforcement giving the money back,” the attorney noted. It is not clear why prosecutors returned only 300 bitcoin, and not all 400 bitcoin when they reportedly declined to charge Clark at the time.
Prosecutors set $725,000 bail for Clark.
The Florida teenager was arrested on July 31 and is facing 30 felony charges to promote a Bitcoin giveaway scam by hacking popular Twitter accounts. Prosecutors have referred to him as the “mastermind” behind the massive security breach. In Saturday’s hearing, the prosecutors set $725,000 bail for the accused, which is six times what he is accused of stealing through the Twitter hack. Two other people have also been charged for their alleged participation in the hack. They face federal charges since they are adults, while Clark is facing state charges as a juvenile. The 19-year-old U.K. resident Mason Sheppard and 22-year-old Florida resident Nima Fazeli are said to be co-conspirators of the scam.
