A recovery phrase can give someone access to a wallet, even when it is held in a case file rather than by its owner. In a report published November 11, 2026, at 11:27:15 UTC+08:00, TechFlow described a Dutch prosecution involving a 24-word phrase saved in police records.
According to a November 9 announcement by the Dutch Public Prosecution Service (OM), prosecutors allege that a former Royal Netherlands Marechaussee (KMar) investigator used work-related access to police systems to obtain the phrase from an earlier case record concerning a traveler who had been checked at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. Prosecutors say the former investigator accessed the record in October 2025, transferred more than €6,000 worth of cryptocurrency from the traveler’s wallet to a personal account, then exchanged it and reinvested in other cryptocurrencies.
The investigation also found approximately 20 subsequent searches of the traveler’s police records, according to the report. The former investigator has been dismissed. Prosecutors are seeking a six-month prison sentence and repayment to the traveler; the court has not yet ruled.
The case illustrates a custody boundary: a recovery phrase retained in another organization’s records may be accessible to people with access to those records. The alleged theft and requested sentence remain matters before the court.
Original report: TechFlow — November 11, 2026, 11:27:15 UTC+08:00.