While some investors who wanted to buy Bitcoin and crypto money sold their house and car, an unknown person in South Korea did nothing to buy Bitcoin because Bitcoin found it.
In June 2018, an unnamed South Korean investor accidentally received 199,999 Bitcoins from a wallet in Greece.
After spending three of the $1.25 million worth of Bitcoins at the time of submission for personal needs, the investor transferred the remaining Bitcoins to two personal accounts.
Acting immediately, the Prosecutor’s Office found the investor who bought the Bitcoins guilty of embezzlement and filed a lawsuit based on the Law on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Economic Crimes.
The lower court ruled that the investor committed embezzlement and sentenced him to 18 months in prison.
Although Bitcoin is considered digital data and is not a property, the court found the investor guilty of embezzlement in “exploitation of property owned by someone else”.
However, the Supreme Court of Korea overturned the decision, ruling that the investor who accidentally sent Bitcoin to his wallet was innocent and sent the file back to the lower court.
In its reversal decision, the Korean Supreme Court stated that Bitcoin cannot be seen as a property due to the lack of a legal basis for cryptocurrencies, and in this context, the investor is not guilty and should be exempted from criminal sanctions.
Kwon O-hoon, partner at law firm Cha & Kwon, said he found it odd that the investor was found guilty of embezzlement by the lower court, saying, “The investor who bought the bitcoin will not be penalized, but the investor still has legal obligations to return the money.” said.