Man Alleges Spouse Stole $172 Million in Bitcoin After 'Covertly Recording' Him – Decrypt

The spouse of a UK resident is alleged to have stolen round $172 million in Bitcoin from her husband, in accordance with courtroom paperwork filed within the UK’s Excessive Court docket of Justice final week.

The person, Ping Fai Yuen, had greater than 2,323 Bitcoin securely saved on his Trezor {hardware} pockets in 2023. However on August 2 of that yr, unbeknownst to Ping, 2,323 Bitcoin was transferred from his pockets, and after a number of transactions, was dispersed throughout 71 totally different Bitcoin addresses. No transactions have taken place since December 21, 2023. 

Warned by his daughter that July that his now-estranged spouse, Enjoyable Yung Li, was making an attempt to take his Bitcoin, Ping put in audio gear in his residence. That led to recordings which allegedly implicate Enjoyable, who probably with the assistance of her sister, a second named defendant, Lai Yung Li, secretly recorded him and stole his seed phrase. 

“A recording of July 29, 2023 has been described on behalf of [Ping Fai Yuen] as capturing [Fun Yung Li] discussing CCTV which has been arrange in the home, the place the claimant sat and hid the password, utilizing the pockets,” the courtroom paperwork say. The submitting additional alleges that the spouse was “covertly recording” him in an effort to achieve entry to his Bitcoin holdings.

Excerpts from the audio recordings comprise phrases like “The Bitcoin has transferred to me” and “take all of it,” in accordance with the submitting. 

Upon discovering his Bitcoin had moved, Ping confronted his spouse and assaulted her, resulting in his arrest and later responsible plea on counts of “assault occasioning precise bodily hurt and two offenses of widespread assault.”

He additionally reported the theft of his Bitcoin to the police, which led to the arrest of Enjoyable in 2023. Police discovered and seized 10 crypto chilly wallets, not less than three with names attributable to Ping, however in the end launched Enjoyable after she supplied a no remark interview and made bail. 

“The police have since confirmed they’d take no additional motion pending new proof,” the courtroom doc says.

In November 2025, Ping utilized for a “proprietary asset preservation injunction,” in search of a declaration of possession of the BTC, a freezing of Enjoyable’s crypto property, and a return of the Bitcoin or an equal quantity of GBP—the UK’s fiat forex. 

In a judgement following a March 2 listening to, Justice Cotter stated he thinks Ping has a excessive likelihood of succeeding within the declare. 

“In my judgment the claimant has demonstrated a really excessive chance of success,” he wrote. “The proof is that he was warned of what the First Defendant was in search of to do, the transcripts are damning; and when the First Defendant’s property was searched, the required gear to exfiltrate the Bitcoin was discovered.” 

“Twenty-four years as a primary occasion decide have repeatedly highlighted the knowledge of making use of Occam’s razor,” he added, noting the precept which means that the best clarification is probably going one of the best clarification. 

Cotter additionally famous that Enjoyable has had a possibility to share her file of the occasions, however has opted not to take action. In his ultimate remarks, the decide famous that given Bitcoin’s volatility, “an early trial is critical.”