Tēnā koe,

I am writing under the Official Information Act 1982 to request information about New Zealand Police's handling of seized cryptocurrency assets, including Bitcoin and other digital assets.

I am a journalist with Cryptocurrency NZ (cryptocurrency.org.nz), New Zealand's independent crypto news organization. This request is made in the public interest.

I request the following information:

A. Seizure volumes

1. The total amount of cryptocurrency seized by New Zealand Police, broken down by year, from 2015 to present.

2. The types of cryptocurrency seized (Bitcoin, Ethereum, Monero and others), broken down by year where records allow.

3. The estimated NZ dollar value of cryptocurrency seized, broken down by year, at the time of seizure.

B. Current holdings

4. The total amount and estimated current value of cryptocurrency currently held by New Zealand Police as evidence or under confiscation orders.

5. Whether any seized cryptocurrency has ever been lost, stolen, misplaced, or become inaccessible while in New Zealand Police custody - including through loss of private keys, hardware failure, internal theft, exchange insolvency, or any other cause - and if so, the full details of each incident including the amount involved, the date, and the outcome.

5a. Whether New Zealand Police has ever had seized cryptocurrency stolen by an internal or external party, and if so, details of any investigation or disciplinary action that followed.

5b. Whether New Zealand Police stores private keys to seized cryptocurrency wallets internally, and what security protocols govern access to those keys.

5c. Whether New Zealand Police has ever been unable to access seized cryptocurrency due to encryption, loss of credentials, or suspect non-cooperation, and if so, how many such cases exist and what happened to those assets.

C. Liquidation process

6. The process by which New Zealand Police liquidates or converts seized cryptocurrency to fiat currency following a confiscation order.

7. Whether New Zealand Police uses a specific exchange, broker or third-party service provider to convert seized cryptocurrency, and if so, the name of that provider.

8. Whether seized cryptocurrency is sold via public auction, private sale, or another method.
9. Who within New Zealand Police or the broader government holds authority to authorize the sale of seized cryptocurrency.

D. Storage and custody

10. How seized cryptocurrency is stored while in police custody - including whether private keys are held internally, in hardware wallets, or with a third-party custodian.

11. Whether custody of seized cryptocurrency is handled internally by New Zealand Police or outsourced to an external provider, and if outsourced, the name of that provider.

12. What happens to seized cryptocurrency if the exchange or custodian holding it becomes insolvent or ceases to operate.

E. The responsible team

13. Which unit, team or division within New Zealand Police is responsible for cryptocurrency evidence handling, seizure and blockchain tracing.

14. The approximate number of staff dedicated to this function.

15. What blockchain analysis or on-chain tracing tools New Zealand Police uses in investigations involving cryptocurrency.

F. Compliance and process

16. What compliance framework, policy or guideline governs how New Zealand Police stores, handles and liquidates seized cryptocurrency.

17. Whether New Zealand Police follows any specific financial crime or anti-money-laundering compliance process when converting seized cryptocurrency to fiat.

Please provide documents, records, policies or guidelines that are held and can be released under the Act. Where information cannot be released in full, I ask that it be released in part with reasons given for any withholding.

Ngā mihi,

Harry Satoshi
Editor, Cryptocurrency NZ