Nova Scotia Judge Orders Bitcoin Wallet Returned to Family of Convicted Killer
A Nova Scotia Supreme Court judge ruled Tuesday that prosecutors failed to link a Bitcoin wallet on a seized laptop to the 2015 killing of Taylor Samson. The wallet will be returned to the family of William Sandeson, though about C$5,000 in cash found in his apartment was forfeited.
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What the Court Decided
Nova Scotia Supreme Court Justice John Bodurtha ruled on Tuesday, November 3, that a laptop holding a Bitcoin wallet must be returned to the family of William Sandeson, according to Global News. The judge found the Crown had not shown the cryptocurrency was proceeds of crime or otherwise tied to the 2015 killing of Taylor Samson. Bodurtha described the potential use of the crypto in the drug transaction as "hypothetical."
The same ruling upheld the forfeiture of about C$5,000 in cash found in Sandeson's Halifax apartment, which the court classed as offence-related property. Sandeson appeared virtually at the hearing after filing a motion in April seeking return of personal items seized after his 2015 arrest.
Disputed Values of the Wallet
The sources differ on what the wallet is worth, and the figures do not reconcile. Sandeson has put its value at between about US$5,800 and US$7,200 (C$8,000 to C$10,000), per Global News. A lawyer for Samson's family, who is pursuing a separate wrongful death suit in which the crypto was central, has said it could now be worth more than US$144,000 (C$200,000). Global News did not report how many bitcoin the wallet holds, so neither figure can be checked against on-chain balances from the reporting alone.
Background to the Killing and Trials
Sandeson, then 23 and about to start medical school at Dalhousie University, arranged for Samson, 22, to visit his apartment on August 15, 2015, to buy cannabis Sandeson had arranged to purchase for C$40,000, according to prosecutors at his 2023 trial. Sandeson admitted shooting Samson, kept the drugs and money, and said he later dumped the body in a river feeding the Bay of Fundy. Samson's remains have never been found.
Sandeson was convicted of first-degree murder in 2017, but an appeals court overturned that verdict in 2020. At a second trial in 2023, he admitted the shooting but said he acted in self-defense. A jury convicted him of second-degree murder, which carries an automatic life sentence. He is serving the sentence in Quebec and will be eligible for parole in 2030.
Why the Wallet Was Not Tied to the Crime
The laptop and its contents were never introduced as evidence at Sandeson's criminal trial, a detail that underlines how the device's status was contested only in the forfeiture and civil tracks. Forfeiture generally requires the state to show a link between an asset and criminal activity before keeping it, and the court applied that same standard to crypto without a special exception. On this record the cash met the standard and the crypto did not.
Implications for the Civil Case and Prosecutors
The ruling is likely to complicate Samson's family's civil claim, since the wallet was at the center of their wrongful death case and had been the subject of a prior injunction request. Any further move to reach the asset would now proceed in the civil track rather than the criminal one. For prosecutors, the case shows that seizing a device is not sufficient; a documented link between the digital assets and the offence is required, and the court found that link absent here.
Why It Matters
For Traders
The ruling does not move bitcoin's market price, so any trading relevance is limited to sentiment around seized or disputed crypto holdings.
For Investors
The decision applies ordinary forfeiture standards to a crypto asset with no special carve-out, a precedent worth tracking for how courts treat seized digital assets.
For Builders
Courts require a documented on-chain or evidentiary link between a wallet and criminal proceeds, so custody and provenance records matter for any wallet exposed to legal seizure.
This article is for information only and is not financial advice. Read the full disclaimer.
