In an unexpected move, the director of civil forfeiture in British Columbia, Canada, has issued an unexplained wealth order to seize a safe deposit box containing cash, gold bars, and luxury items that are linked to a co-founder of the QuadrigaCX cryptocurrency exchange. This order requires the individual to explain how they obtained these assets. The province’s minister of public safety and solicitor general, Mike Farnworth, confirmed this development and highlighted that QuadrigaCX, once the largest cryptocurrency exchange in Canada, became insolvent after the death of its co-founder, Gerald Cotten, who took the private keys to the exchange’s offline storage systems with him. According to court documents, the assets are believed to be the proceeds of criminal activities associated with Michael Patryn, another co-founder of Quadriga Coin Exchange, and Gerald Cotten. The order has led to the seizure of a safe deposit box at CIBC Bank and an associated account. Inside the box, authorities found CAD 250,200 ($184,250) in cash, gold bars, luxury watches, and other jewelry items. The box also contained a firearm and identity documents with different names. The order alleges that Patryn was involved in misappropriating customer funds and cryptocurrency while being an active participant in QuadrigaCX’s operations. The objective now is to compel Patryn to provide an explanation for his wealth. Following the collapse of QuadrigaCX, Patryn has ventured into decentralized finance, engaging in various protocols under the pseudonym “Sifu.” It is worth noting that Patryn has a history of convictions for financial crimes in the United States.
Canadian authorities take action to confiscate assets linked to QuadrigaCX CEO