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A8 WORLD NEWS
Wednesday 18 april 2018

Suspect in Iceland’s ‘Big Bitcoin Heist’ escapes prison

By EGILL BJARNASON tir was among five Nordic
Associated Press prime ministers who met
REYKJAVIK, Iceland (AP) with India’s prime minister
— A prisoner in Iceland sus- Tuesday in Stockholm,
pected of masterminding The prime minister’s pres-
the theft of about 600 com- ence, the witness said,
puters that were being used was the only unusual thing
to mine bitcoin and other about that flight.
virtual currencies escaped The escape is yet another
custody and fled Tuesday twist in a criminal case with-
on a passenger plane that out parallel on the peace-
a witness said also carried ful island nation with a pop-
the remote North Atlantic ulation of 340,000 and one
nation’s prime minister. of the world’s lowest crime
Police said surveillance rates. Police commissioner
footage showed a suspect Olafur Helgi Kjartansson
they identified as Sindri told The Associated Press in
Thor Stefansson boarding March it was “a grand theft
a flight to Sweden at Ice- on a scale unseen before.”
land’s international airport Police have arrested 22
in Keflavik. They said he people altogether, includ-
traveled under a passport ing a security guard, with-
in someone else’s name. out solving the burglaries.
“He had an accomplice,” In this file photo taken on Jan. 17, 2018, a worker walks along a row of computer rigs that run Blessed with an abun-
around the clock ‘mining’ bitcoin inside the Genesis Mining cryptocurrency mine in Keflavik,
Police Chief Gunnar Sch- Iceland. dance of renewable en-
ram told Visir, an online ergy, Iceland has emerged
news outlet in Iceland. “We year for allegedly stealing — the thieves could turn Stefansson had been in as a popular base for large
are sure of that.” the powerful computer in a massive profit in an un- custody since February. He virtual currency companies
Investigators think Stefans- Iceland’s biggest thefts. traceable currency without was moved to the open that use massive amounts
son left the low-security pris- The stolen equipment, ever selling the items. prison 10 days ago, police of electricity running the
on where he recently had which still is missing, has The escaped prisoner was said. A passenger on the computers that create bit-
been transferred through been valued at almost $2 being held at the Sogn pris- flight that the escaped in- coins.
a window early Tuesday. million. Icelandic media on in rural southern Iceland, mate allegedly caught Owners of the stolen com-
Guards did not report him have the case the “Big Bit- located some 95 kilometers to Sweden told national puters have, in a rare pub-
missing until after the flight coin Heist.” (59 miles) from the airport. broadcaster RUV that Ice- lic outreach, promised a
to Sweden had taken off.. If the stolen equipment is The prison is unfenced and land’s prime minister, Ka- $60,000 reward to anyone
Stefansson was among 11 used for its original purpose inmates there have tele- trin Jakobsdottir, was also who can lead detectives
people arrested earlier this — to create new bitcoins phone and internet access. on the plane. Jakobsdot- to the stolen computers.q

Ex-chief of Hungary’s swim federation held in 1998 slaying

By PABLO GORONDI the suspect is 69-year-old the United States. Later, he recovered by police. The ordering an underworld kill-
Associated Press Tamas Gyarfas, who led began building a media assassination shocked the ing, to question him about
BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — the Hungarian Swimming company that grew to in- country and speculation suspected involvement in
Police arrested the former Federation in 1993-2006 clude popular magazines about its motive immedi- Fenyo’s slaying.
head of Hungary’s swim- while also holding top po- and newspapers as well as ately centered on Fenyo’s Gyarfas resigned as head
ming federation after ques- sitions in European and a cable TV channel. legal and allegedly illegal of Hungary’s swimming
tioning him Tuesday in con- international swimming or- He had a well-known rivalry business dealings. federation in November
nection with the 1998 slay- ganizations and Hungary’s with Gyarfas, who was the A Slovak man, Jozef Ro- 2016, just months before
ing of a business rival. Olympic committee. He producer and occasional hac, was sentenced to life the country hosted the
Authorities identified the also was a key media fig- interviewer of “Napkelte” in prison last year for Fen- 2017 world championships,
man only as T. Gyarfas, say- ure after Hungary’s return (Sunrise), state television’s yo’s murder, but the person the largest sporting event
ing he is suspected of or- to democracy in 1990. widely watched morning who hired the gunman had ever held in the country.
dering the killing of media Fenyo, who worked for program. not previously been identi- A campaign for his oust-
mogul Janos Fenyo, who years as a press photogra- In the late afternoon of fied. Police said that last er was led by three-time
was fatally shot while his pher, launched a success- Feb. 11, 1998, Fenyo was month they met with a pris- Olympic champion Katinka
car was stopped at a Bu- ful chain of video rental shot numerous times with on inmate identified only Hosszu, who called him a
dapest traffic light. stores shortly after return- a Croatian-made subma- as T. Portik, who is currently “most harmful factor” for
Hungarian media said ing in 1987 from a stay in chine gun, which later was serving a 13-year term for Hungarian swimming.q