Another 500 BTC linked to an Ireland-based asset seizure has moved from a decade-old Bitcoin wallet, renewing questions about how Irish authorities accessed the funds.
On Friday, Aug. 28, 2026, 500 BTC worth approximately $38 million was transferred from a wallet created on Jan. 23, 2016. The funds moved from a legacy P2PKH (Pay-to-PubKey-Hash) wallet to a newer P2SH (Pay-to-Script-Hash) address, according to btcparser.com.
The coins had not moved in more than a decade. When they were last active, Bitcoin traded at roughly $382, valuing the 500 BTC at about $191,217. At current prices, the same holdings are worth approximately $38 million.
Mystery Surrounds Collins’ Bitcoin Seed Phrase
Arkham Intelligence labels the funds “Clifton Collins.” Bitcoin.com News reporter Kevin Helms first reported on Collins nearly six years ago, on Jan. 4, 2021. Collins, described as a cannabis dealer, was arrested and forfeited approximately $3 million worth of BTC to Irish authorities.
Helms also reported that Ireland’s Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) could not access another 6,000 BTC associated with Collins. Collins said the seed phrase had been written on paper and hidden inside a fishing rod.
CAB and Europol’s European Cybercrime Centre have never officially said that they recovered the fishing rod, despite seizing portions of the Bitcoin over an extended period. CAB last moved Collins-linked BTC during the first week of July, following an earlier transfer in March.
With the latest 500 BTC transaction, CAB has recovered a total of 2,000 BTC, currently valued at approximately $155 million. As of Friday evening, neither Irish officials nor Europol’s cybercrime unit had confirmed a fourth recovery, as they did with previous transactions. Arkham data indicates that the funds were transferred to Coinbase Prime.
Bitcoin Blockchain Tracks Transfers Despite Official Silence
The central mystery is how law enforcement obtained Collins’ seed phrase. Neither Europol nor CAB has stated, “We found the rod.” According to Irish Times reporter Conor Lally, the official explanation was that authorities used “highly complex technical expertise and decryption resources,”
It remains unclear whether Collins had a backup of the seed phrase that he did not initially disclose to CAB or whether authorities eventually located the fishing rod.
Collins told police that the rod was at a house he had rented. However, when officers searched for it, the fishing rod was missing and no one knew where it had gone. Another tenant may have later found it and alerted Irish authorities, but the circumstances have not been publicly established.
The full story may never be disclosed. The Bitcoin blockchain, however, continues to provide a public record of the transfers, including the latest movement of 500 BTC.