One tip led the police to the house in Axel, but the arrested individuals were eventually released after interrogation.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works .
(Image credit: Deng Xiang/Unsplash ) Share Share by: Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Four suspects were arrested by Zeeland police in the Netherlands after the authorities received a tip that they were involved in the theft of 169 NFTs. According to Dutch newspaper Politie [machine translated], the three individuals from Axel and one from the neighboring Terneuzen have been interrogated by detectives but have since been released. Nevertheless, the police action also included the seizure of various data carriers and money, as well as three vehicles and the house itself where the raid was conducted.
The stolen NFTs were estimated to be worth 1.4 million Euros (around $1.65 million), which is indeed a massive amount. However, this is a tiny drop in the Ocean of stolen Bitcoin and other crypto, estimated to be worth $17 billion in 2025 alone . We should note that NFTs are not exactly the same as cryptocurrencies, but they both run on blockchain technology and can even be stored on the same wallets that keep Bitcoin, Ethereum, and the like.
The relative novelty of cryptocurrencies and NFTs means that many people get scammed when using these technologies, especially older people who are often tricked into depositing large amounts of cash into Bitcoin ATMs . But even those who are used to the system can fall victim, either through phishing, social engineering, malware, or seed phrase theft, among others.
Crypto fraud and laundering ring that stole $689 million busted by European authorities
Chinese and British authorities are determining how to return 61,000 stolen Bitcoins worth $6.7 billion
China accuses Washington of stealing $13 billion worth of Bitcoin in alleged hack
The large values tied to NFTs and Bitcoin make them lucrative targets for hackers, with just one well-targeted heist able to net millions of dollars in profit. There was even a true-crime story about a group of hackers who stole 4,100 Bitcoins and lived a high-roller lifestyle for a short time, before everything devolved into assault and kidnapping, eventually attracting the attention of federal agencies.
Since NFTs are tokens and are stored in wallets, the suspected thieves didn’t perform a bank vault heist with guns blazing. Instead, it was done behind monitors and keyboards, where they likely targeted individuals using phishing websites, fake wallet apps, or even with compromised browser extensions. It also seems that the Zeeland authorities do not have enough evidence against the four individuals, as they were eventually released after their interrogation. Still, the seized items should hopefully assist the police in their investigation and eventually lead to the arrest and conviction of the real perps.
Follow Tom's Hardware on Google News , or add us as a preferred source , to get our latest news, analysis, & reviews in your feeds.
Get Tom's Hardware's best news and in-depth reviews, straight to your inbox.
Key considerations
- Investor positioning can change fast
- Volatility remains possible near catalysts
- Macro rates and liquidity can dominate flows
Reference reading
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/cryptocurrency/SPONSORED_LINK_URL
- https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/cryptocurrency/four-arrested-following-usd1-6-million-nft-heist-in-the-netherlands-data-carriers-cash-cars-and-house-also-seized-as-part-of-ongoing-investigation#main
- https://www.tomshardware.com
- 100W car amplifier hacked into a custom RTX 3080 heatsink — custom mod slashes GPU temps by 10°C and looks absolutely stunning
- Combat insane price rises with this Newegg 9800X3D, RAM, and X870 motherboard bundle — save $269.99 over buying the parts individually
- ChatGPT found to be sourcing data from AI-generated content — popular LLM uses content from Grokipedia as source for more obscure queries
- Jensen laments buying Mercedes for his parents with Nvidia stock that would be worth $1.33 billion today — founder cashed out some stock after 1999 IPO to buy h
- Get rid of that ancient thermal paste with Arctic's MX-6, which just hit an all-time low price at Amazon — a cheap fix for what could turn into an expensive pro
Informational only. No financial advice. Do your own research.