An Australian couple is facing an October plea trial on theft charges after spending $6.7 million that was accidentally deposited into their account by cryptocurrency exchange Crypto.com last year.
In May 2021, Thevamanogari Manivel attempted to transfer $100 to her partner Jatinder Singh’s Crypto.com account. However, the exchange mistakenly sent $6.7 million to Manivel’s bank account due to a mismatch between her bank details and Crypto.com account.
The couple allegedly went on a spending spree, buying four houses, vehicles, and other items before the exchange discovered the error in December 2021 during an audit. Crypto.com sued to recover the funds.
The couple claimed they thought they had won a competition prize from Crypto.com, but the exchange denied running any such contest. A court ordered one $1.35 million home purchased by the couple to be sold and the money returned.
Manivel recently pleaded guilty to recklessly dealing with criminal proceeds and received an 18-month corrections order. However, Singh continues to face theft charges and will head to a plea trial in October 2023.
The case highlights the potential downsides of erroneous transactions in the cryptocurrency sphere. While the couple insists they did not commit intentional theft, questions remain about their failure to confirm if the sudden multi-million deposit was a mistake. Crypto.com, for its part, clearly fell short in letting such a large clerical error occur undetected.
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