19-5-2025 – The Australian Federal Police (AFP) have confiscated a trove of opulent assets from Shane Duffy, a 32-year-old Queenslander convicted of cybercrime. The haul, valued at $4.5 million, includes a sprawling beachfront mansion in Beachmere, a sleek 2019 Mercedes-Benz sedan, and approximately 25 Bitcoins. The seizure, executed by the AFP’s Criminal Assets Confiscation Taskforce (CACT), marks a significant blow to illicit cyber operations.
Duffy’s downfall traces back to a sophisticated investigation sparked in 2018, when Luxembourg authorities flagged suspicious Bitcoin transactions to AUSTRAC, Australia’s financial intelligence agency. The probe uncovered Duffy’s alleged role in siphoning 950 Bitcoins—now worth an estimated $150 million—from a French cryptocurrency exchange in 2013. While no charges have been filed in connection to this theft, federal laws empowered the AFP to freeze and forfeit the assets, which were formally restrained in 2019 and confiscated in April this year.
The Beachmere mansion, nestled in Queensland’s Moreton Bay, stands as a centrepiece of the seizure. Purchased for $1.1 million and now valued at $2 million, the property was cunningly registered under Duffy’s mother’s name. This tactic, however, failed to shield it from the CACT’s reach. The taskforce, which has stripped criminals of $1.2 billion in assets since 2019, also seized digital currencies, luxury vehicles, and other high-value items linked to Duffy’s illicit ventures.
Duffy’s criminal repertoire extends beyond cryptocurrency theft. In 2013, he profited $32,000 by selling access to dormant League of Legends accounts, a scheme bolstered by hacking the X account of Riot Games president Marc Merrill. Partnering with another hacker, Duffy disrupted gameplay by disconnecting players, costing the US-based gaming giant hundreds of thousands of dollars. His actions led to a 2016 conviction in Brisbane District Court, where he pleaded guilty and served a two-and-a-half-year sentence.
AFP Commander Jason Kennedy underscored the broader mission behind the seizure. “Criminals thrive on greed, exploiting honest Australians and businesses,” he said. “The Proceeds of Crime Act equips us to dismantle their gains, ensuring ill-gotten wealth is redirected to strengthen community safety and law enforcement.” Funds from the sale of Duffy’s assets will flow into a dedicated fund supporting crime prevention initiatives.
The CACT’s relentless pursuit of criminal wealth—ranging from fine art to digital currencies—signals a robust stance against cybercrime. By severing the financial lifelines of offenders like Duffy, the AFP aims to disrupt the cycle of illegal profiteering that fuels further criminality.
