Lanarkshire man convicted following the high-value theft of cryptocurrency in Blantyre

A 28-year-old man has been found guilty of reset following a robbery after an investigation into an incident which involved a high value theft of cryptocurrency.

John-Ross Rennie from Lanarkshire was convicted following a trial which concluded at the High Court in Glasgow on Tuesday, 31 October, 2023.

The robbery took place at an address in Blantyre on Wednesday, 18 March, 2020.

A quantity of bitcoin, valued at the time of around $200,000, was forcibly transferred to an account which following investigation was found to be linked to Rennie.

A car and other valuable items were also taken.

Rennie was not present during the robbery but has been found guilty after it was established he had benefitted.

Detective Inspector Craig Potter, of Police Scotland’s Cyber Investigations unit, said: “This was complex investigation and the first robbery in Scotland to involve tracing the movements of stolen cryptocurrency.

“Specialist cybercrime officers were able to follow the movement of funds to show he had been responsible for the bitcoin wallet which received the stolen funds.

“This is a complex and constantly evolving technology. This conviction demonstrates Police Scotland capability and commitment to tackling criminality involving the digital space and bringing criminals operating in this world to justice.”

Rennie will be sentenced at a later date.