[ad_1]
Bitcoin is routinely bombed by regulators and the IRS for its use in illegal crimes such as money laundering or tax evasion. Unfortunately, a story involving a former Microsoft engineer who used cryptocurrency to mix over $ 10 million he had scammed the company with doesn’t help this case.
Here’s how one man managed to steal so much money from under the tech giant’s nose and how he was caught using Bitcoin to hide the trail of their mysterious income.
How the birth of cryptocurrency coins is the next stage of digital value transfer
Cryptocurrencies are more popular with millennial investors for a variety of reasons. Those born of the Boomer generation do not trust the stock market, are experts in a predominantly digital lifestyle and have been collecting virtual currencies for a good portion of their lives.
Video games have long used coins as a way to achieve achievement and encourage players to keep collecting. Eventually, with the explosion of digital platforms like games, movies and music streaming services, value-based gift cards adorning digital codes became commonplace, acting as the native currency for whatever platform the card was designed for.
RELATED READINGS | GOING DIGITAL: BITCOIN BEATS GOLD AND SILVER IN RETURNS FROM A YEAR TO TODAY
Apple has had tremendous success with iTunes cards, for example, while Microsoft and many others have followed suit and launched digital gift cards.
Volodymyr Kvashuk, a former Microsoft engineer, defrauded the $ 10 million tech firm according to a new case, using these digital gift cards and Bitcoin.
Bitcoin sets new 2020 high and first higher high since the peak | Source: BTCUSD on TradingView.com
Bitcoin used to evade taxes, steal $ 10 million from Microsoft
The case, according to the IRS, is the first tax case involving Bitcoin. They’re likely using it to set a precedent against cryptocurrency-related tax crimes, and Kvashuk expects nine years and over $ 8 million in refunds to pay.
The case claims that Kvashuk sold digitally valuable gift cards in exchange for Bitcoin and hid his tracks using peer test emails related to the company’s online retail services platform.
RELATED READINGS | THIS RUNNING BITCOIN WALLET HACK STOLEN $ 22 MILLION BTC
The way Kvashuk was ultimately caught is that he likely raised several red flags when he suddenly deposited $ 2.8 million in BTC into a bank account to buy a $ 1.6 million lake house and a new Tesla.
Kvashuk claimed on his taxes that he received the Bitcoin from a family member as a gift and therefore did not have to pay any income tax. The considerable amount potentially promoted the investigation.
The significance of this case is due both to the fact that it is the first of its kind for the IRS, and to the fact that the US tax enforcement arm has become increasingly adept at monitoring Bitcoin transactions.
Featured image from Deposit Photos, Chart from TradingView.com
