A recovery phrase can become a custody risk when it is accessible outside the wallet holder’s control. In a report published on November 11, 2026, TechFlow cited a November 9 announcement from the Dutch Public Prosecution Service (OM) about a former Royal Netherlands Marechaussee (KMar) investigator accused of taking a traveler’s cryptocurrency.
According to prosecutors, the former investigator used police-system access in October 2025 to look up a traveler previously checked at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport. Prosecutors allege that an earlier case record contained the traveler’s 24-word wallet recovery phrase, which the suspect used to transfer cryptocurrency worth more than €6,000 to a personal account. They say the suspect then exchanged the assets and reinvested in other cryptocurrencies.
The investigation also found that the suspect subsequently searched the victim’s police records about 20 times, according to the report. The former investigator has been dismissed. Prosecutors are seeking a six-month prison sentence and repayment to the victim; the court has not yet ruled. The alleged theft should not be treated as a court-established loss.
The custody lesson is the distinction between keeping a recovery phrase available for recovery and keeping it confidential: a copy in a record accessible to others can undermine that confidentiality. This case remains an allegation pending a court decision.
Original report: TechFlow · Published November 11, 2026, at 11:27 a.m. (UTC+8).
