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 house.
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 cut up throughout 71 separate addresses by way of 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 house to seize the phrase, probably with assist from her sister, Lai Yung Li, who can be named as a defendant.
In line with 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 courtroom, 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 wherein 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 frequent 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 said they are going to take no additional motion with out new proof.
In November 2025, Yuen sought a proprietary asset preservation injunction. He requested the courtroom 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 reveals a powerful probability of success. He pointed to the warning from Yuen’s daughter, the audio transcripts, and the invention of kit 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 choose additionally cited Occam’s razor, the precept that the best rationalization with the fewest assumptions is usually the more than likely. He mentioned that this easy account aligns with the out there proof, and famous that Li has had the chance to current her model of occasions however has not finished 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 in the course of the course of litigation.
The case is anticipated to check how English courts deal with possession and restoration claims tied to digital belongings.
