Man sentenced to prison after spending most of over $6,900,000 mistakenly transferred to a major crypto exchange: report

A 39-year-old cryptocurrency enthusiast who mistakenly squandered millions of dollars in money will reportedly spend three years in prison after pleading guilty in an Australian court.

Local news site News.com.au reports that in 2021, Jatinder Singh attempted to deposit around $65 into his Crypto.com portfolio using the Commonwealth bank account of his then-partner Thevamanogari Manivel.

The transfer was rejected because the names did not match, but when Crypto.com refunded Singh, the exchange transferred $6.91 million because an employee in the refund table accidentally entered Manivel's bank account number instead of the $65.

Singh then went on a shopping spree while Manivel transferred $2.64 million into her bank account in Malaysia.

Crypto.com discovered the bug seven months later. Both the exchange and Commonwealth Bank contacted Manivel, who said she believed it was a scam attempt.

Manivel was arrested at Melbourne Airport in 2022 as he attempted to board a flight to Malaysia with over $7,000 in cash. Singh, who was also arrested later that month, said he thought he had won the money in an online competition.

Singh eventually told the court that he knew the money was not his. He was convicted of theft for spending $4 million on real estate and luxury goods and giving $660,000 as a gift to a friend.

On Tuesday, he was sentenced to 361 days in custody. This time will be counted as time already served and deducted from his sentence. He can be released on parole after two years in prison.

Manivel also pleaded guilty to reckless handling of proceeds of crime in September 2023. She was sentenced to 209 days of her sentence already served and given an 18-month suspended sentence.

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