A dispute over greater than $172 million in Bitcoin has moved ahead within the UK’s Excessive Court docket of Justice, the place a person alleges his estranged spouse stole 1000’s of cash from his {hardware} pockets utilizing covert surveillance inside their dwelling.
Court docket filings present that Ping Fai Yuen, a UK resident, held 2,323 Bitcoin in a Trezor {hardware} pockets in 2023.
On Aug. 2 of that yr, the complete steadiness was transferred with out his information. The funds had been later break up throughout 71 separate addresses by a sequence of transactions. No motion has been recorded since Dec. 21, 2023.
Yuen claims his spouse, Enjoyable Yung Li, obtained entry to the pockets’s restoration phrase, which can be utilized to recreate the pockets and transfer funds.
The filings allege she recorded him inside their dwelling to seize the phrase, presumably with assist from her sister, Lai Yung Li, who can be named as a defendant.
In response to the declare, Yuen had been warned by his daughter in July 2023 that Li was trying to entry his Bitcoin.
He then put in audio recording tools within the residence. The recordings are cited as key proof. In a single excerpt referenced in court docket, Li is alleged to have mentioned, “The Bitcoin has transferred to me” and “take all of it.”
The filings additionally describe a recording from July 29, 2023 through which Li allegedly mentioned digicam placement and the placement the place Yuen saved his pockets credentials. The declare states she was “covertly recording” him in an effort to acquire entry.
After discovering the switch, Yuen confronted Li and assaulted her. He was arrested and later pleaded responsible to assault occasioning precise bodily hurt and two counts of widespread assault.
Police opened an investigation into the alleged theft and arrested Li in 2023. Officers seized 10 crypto chilly wallets throughout a search, together with a number of linked to Yuen. Authorities later launched Li after a no remark interview. The police have since acknowledged they may take no additional motion with out new proof.
In November 2025, Yuen sought a proprietary asset preservation injunction. He requested the court docket to verify his possession of the Bitcoin, freeze Li’s crypto holdings, and order the return of the belongings or an equal sum in British kilos.
‘Damning’ proof of bitcoin theft
In a judgment following a March 2 listening to, Justice Cotter mentioned Yuen’s case exhibits a powerful chance of success. He pointed to the warning from Yuen’s daughter, the audio transcripts, and the invention of apparatus able to accessing the pockets.
“The proof is that he was warned of what the First Defendant was in search of to do, the transcripts are damning,” Cotter wrote.
The decide additionally cited Occam’s razor, the precept that the best rationalization with the fewest assumptions is usually the probably. He mentioned that this easy account aligns with the accessible proof, and famous that Li has had the chance to current her model of occasions however has not achieved so within the proceedings.
Cotter added that the volatility of Bitcoin helps the necessity for a swift trial, as the worth of the disputed belongings could shift through the course of litigation.
The case is anticipated to check how English courts deal with possession and restoration claims tied to digital belongings.