Finnish police can’t find suspected bitcoin blackmailer they just released

  protos.com 2 h

Finnish police are once again hunting a suspected hacker accused of blackmailing 30,000 psychotherapy patients for more than $500,000 in bitcoin after he gave them the slip when he was released from pre-trial detention.

Finnish national Aleksanteri Tomminpoika Kivimäki pleaded not guilty to hacking into the database of the Vastaamo psychotherapy center in 2018. Kivimäki allegedly told the center to pay 40 bitcoin, worth around $518,000 at the time of the breach, before sharing private documents in 2020.

According to the terms of Kivimäki’s release, he was banned from leaving the Espoo area and was ordered to remain at a certain address between seven in the evening and eight in the morning each day. He was also supposed to report to the police three times a week and be contactable on a certain phone number at all times.

However, since prosecutors filed a complaint last week, police have been unable to locate Kivimäki.

Finnish police trace crypto to accused blackmailer of 33,000 therapy patients