US Moves Seized Crypto Linked to Cocaine Probe to Coinbase Prime

The U.S. government transferred 2,466 UNI, 152,925 CRO and 1,589 LINK-together worth about $34,800-to a Coinbase Prime custody address at roughly 7:15 GMT. The tokens were taken from wallets tied to Oracle technician Brian Krewson as part of an investigation into a $54 million cocaine money‑laundering scheme.

The coins moved on‑chain from addresses linked to Krewson into institutional custody at Coinbase Prime, a destination the government commonly uses before auctions or over‑the‑counter sales. Because the shipment consisted of smaller altcoin holdings rather than large amounts of Bitcoin or Ethereum, no immediate market disruption was reported.

Federal prosecutors allege Krewson helped launder about $54 million in cryptocurrency for convicted traffickers Christopher Castelluzzo and Luke Atwell. Castelluzzo and Atwell were convicted in 2018 for trafficking and received prison terms of 21 and 19 years, respectively. Investigators cite recorded phone conversations in which the parties discussed moving proceeds to jurisdictions such as Malta and the Bahamas.

Krewson, who worked at Oracle from 2015 until 2023 and performed under the stage name Mr. Poto, had his Colorado Springs residence searched in July 2022. He initially resisted handing over wallet keys but later provided passwords and access to the funds, which were moved into a Department of Justice digital asset wallet. When authorities first seized his Ethereum holdings in July 2022, the ETH was valued at about $31 million; by early November 2023 the total was estimated to exceed $54 million. No criminal charges have been filed against Krewson. In a statement, his attorney Steve Rodemer wrote that because Krewson cooperated and provided truthful information, “that chapter of his life is now closed.”

Blockchain analytics firm Arkham Intelligence lists 610 wallet addresses tied to a U.S. government entity with a combined value of about $27.06 billion as of May 8, 2026. The largest holdings are 328,361 Bitcoin, valued at roughly $26.64 billion, followed by 62,756 Ethereum tokens, stablecoins such as USDT worth about $126.22 million and wrapped assets including WBTC at about $60.75 million. Arkham’s historical records show frequent consolidation of seized tokens into Coinbase Prime accounts ahead of auctions or OTC sales, with recent transfers tied to other seizure cases also routed to Coinbase Prime.

Separately, Irish law enforcement reactivated a dormant wallet linked to cannabis dealer Clifton Collins and moved 500 BTC, estimated at about $35 million, in a single transaction. Part of those funds were later routed into a wallet associated with Coinbase Prime, indicating a transfer of recovered assets into institutional custody before further disposition.