Why Law Enforcement Agencies Need Blockchain Intelligence

The new criminal landscape

Gone in minutes: Using cryptocurrency, a drug trafficker or fraudster wires millions in ill-gotten gains across continents, using only a string of pseudonymous wallet addresses. While blockchain technology has revolutionized the financial system for good in many ways — enabling the fast, borderless transfer of value — bad actors also continue to turn to it with more malicious intent.

According to TRM research, since 2023, illicit cryptocurrency transactions have totaled roughly USD 163.1 billion globally. In 2024, ransomware attacks hit record highs, as cybercriminals laundered payments across blockchains, through mixers, and in privacy coins in order to obscure transactions and evade detection. Today, scam networks, cybercriminals, cartels, and nation state actors are increasingly weaponizing cryptocurrency to obscure their activities. And sophisticated criminals are using unhosted wallets, mixing services, and privacy coins to mask their identities and hop between jurisdictions instantaneously. Local crimes, global footprints.

The message is clear: the scale and speed of crypto-facilitated crime is accelerating, and threat actors are exploiting technology to outpace traditional investigative methods.

Law enforcement agencies cannot afford to rely on yesterday’s tools. Maintaining public safety and investigative relevance in this era demands that agencies adopt modern tools equal to the challenge. Blockchain intelligence — which provides critical insights and analytics for following the flow of funds on blockchains — has become an essential tool in disrupting crypto-enabled crime.

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What is blockchain intelligence?

Blockchain intelligence refers to the technologies and techniques that enable investigators to detect, trace, and analyze cryptocurrency transactions for signs of criminal activity — organizing and analyzing on-chain data to map trends, detect patterns, and identify potential risks in blockchain transactions. 

At its core, blockchain intelligence turns the transparent data on public ledgers into actionable intelligence — enabling investigators and analysts to translate digital breadcrumbs into real-world leads. 

Translating analytics into action

Every crypto transaction leaves a permanent trail on a blockchain ledger. The challenge for investigators is linking those pseudonymous transactions to real-world identities. Blockchain intelligence platforms like TRM Labs solve this by combining advanced analytics with attribution data from on-chain and off-chain sources, enabling law enforcement to track illicit financial flows across the pseudonymous nature of cryptocurrency, step by step, even as criminals attempt to launder funds across multiple wallets or different assets. 

Data enriched with proprietary insights

TRM Labs aggregates and analyzes extensive data from diverse sources — including millions of web pages, dark web forums, criminal marketplaces, and open-source intelligence like scam reports and sanctions lists. By mapping and labeling wallet addresses, TRM builds a detailed, actionable database of cryptocurrency activity. Our internal investigators further enrich this data with proprietary insights. For example, if they trace a suspect wallet to a known exchange or darknet market, or link it to a sanctioned North Korean wallet or terrorist financier, this intelligence deepens the blockchain data. This empowers investigators with vital leads, helping them identify and track potential suspects and accomplices in real-time.

Expansive blockchain coverage

TRM Labs offers in-depth insights across over a hundred blockchains, continually expanding coverage. This broad reach is crucial as criminals often exploit the weaker oversight of certain chains, moving funds between different blockchains and assets like TRON, Bitcoin, Ethereum, and lesser-known blockchains and altcoins to evade detection.

Risk scoring and pattern recognition

The best blockchain intelligence tools — like those from TRM — also provide risk scoring and pattern recognition (for example, algorithms to flag mixer usage or common fraud patterns) to highlight suspicious activity across chains. TRM’s configurable risk engine surfaces the highest-risk activity based on over 155 risk indicators, while TRM’s Signatures® uses advanced pattern detection to automatically uncover complex patterns like systematic money laundering or mixer usage that might otherwise evade notice. For law enforcement, this means previously impenetrable financial networks become visible: officers can connect a ransomware payment to the exchange where it was cashed out, or uncover a terrorist crowdfunding campaign on social media that leads to a crypto wallet tied to an extremist group.

Increasing operational efficiency

Here are some key examples of outcomes blockchain intelligence helps enable:

• Speed to insight: Visualize where the money came from and where it went in seconds, using a tool like TRM’s Graph Visualizer.
• Network mapping: Identify addresses likely controlled by the same fraud syndicate, trace illicit funds to a cash-out point (such as an overseas exchange or crypto ATM), and ultimately tie those funds to individuals who can be arrested.
• Court-ready evidence: Develop court-ready analysis with intuitive graphs showing complex transaction histories — transforming what could be an incomprehensible tangle of data into a clear chain of evidence that investigators, prosecutors, and judges can easily grasp (e.g. showing the flow from a victim’s wallet to a suspect’s wallet and through various laundering layers). In Thailand’s recent “Trust No One” case, for instance, police used blockchain intelligence graphs in court to explain how funds moved from victims to scammers — helping secure an arrest warrant.

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How law enforcement teams use blockchain intelligence

Let’s take a look at four core use cases that illustrate how blockchain intelligence is transforming law enforcement operations. Each is backed by a real case study where TRM’s blockchain intelligence enabled dramatic successes in public safety, asset recovery, and criminal disruption.

1. Tracing and recovering victim funds from crypto fraud

One of the most immediate applications of blockchain intelligence is following the trail of stolen cryptocurrency to recover victim funds. 

Crypto scams and frauds — from phishing and extortion to romance scams (including “pig butchering” schemes) — often target ordinary citizens, convincing them to send money to scammers’ wallets. In the past, once funds were sent to a fraudster’s crypto address, victims had little to no hope of recovery. Today, however, agencies of all sizes — including state and local law enforcement — can leverage platforms like TRM to trace stolen funds across the blockchain (even as criminals attempt to launder them) and work with partners like exchanges or federal agencies to freeze and seize the money.

How Cinnaminson Township Police Department turned the tables on a fraud case | New Jersey, USA

What happened

A fraudster impersonating a law enforcement officer extorted an innocent victim by threatening arrest if they didn’t pay in Bitcoin (BTC). Under duress, the victim made multiple BTC payments, which the fraudster promptly tried to launder through a maze of addresses. By the time the Cinnaminson Township Police Department (CTPD) was alerted, the funds had been routed through numerous wallets and appeared to vanish offshore. 

Armed with TRM Forensics, CTPD investigators were able to follow the money from the victim’s wallet through a circuitous laundering path, and discovered the funds had landed in an account at a foreign cryptocurrency exchange. CTPD quickly coordinated with a US federal agency and reached out to the overseas exchange, providing evidence and serving legal process to freeze the scammer’s account.

Operational impact

The result was remarkable: police seized a large portion of the victim’s funds from the exchange, despite the scheme crossing international borders — effectively clawing back money that had left the country. A local agency with roughly 17,000 constituents was able to “punch above its weight” globally, delivering a clear message that crypto-facilitated extortion will not go unpunished, even in small communities.

Operational utility

This case highlights how blockchain intelligence empowers even modestly sized departments to collaborate internationally. Using TRM’s user-friendly Graph Visualizer, Cinnaminson detectives were able to untangle the money flow and identify suspects in days, not weeks. It shows that once officers are trained in blockchain analytics tools, they can defend local citizens from sophisticated foreign scammers — extending their investigative reach.

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2. Investigating and disrupting online investment scams

Another major use case for blockchain intelligence is unraveling complex online investment scams and fraud rings. 

These schemes often involve sophisticated social engineering — for example, scammers who build fake investment platforms or pose as crypto “gurus” on social media to entice victims. Such cases can involve thousands of transactions and multiple interlinked wallets, making them daunting to investigate with traditional methods. Blockchain intelligence allows law enforcement to quickly map out the entire fraud network, trace illicit proceeds to their cash-out points, and disrupt the scam by freezing assets and identifying ringleaders. Insights from one case can even reveal patterns that help prevent future scams, turning an investigation into a tool for community education and crime prevention.

How Houston Police Department successfully recovered scam victims’ funds | Texas, USA

What happened

The Cyber Crimes Unit at Houston Police Department (HPD)  faced a sprawling online investment scam that targeted an elderly resident. The victim was lured via Facebook into a fake WhatsApp investment group, where scammers posing as successful crypto traders convinced him to invest over USD 1 million in Ethereum. When the victim attempted to withdraw some of his funds, the scammers invented bogus “tax” fees — a red flag that finally made him realize he had been defrauded. He contacted HPD, and the case landed with Detective J. Taylor of the Cyber Crimes Unit. 

Using blockchain intelligence tools, Detective Taylor immediately began tracing the stolen crypto. His analysis revealed that the Ethereum had been routed through only a couple of intermediary addresses before consolidating into three accounts at a single cryptocurrency exchange. This was a crucial breakthrough — those exchange accounts were tied to an organized scam network, and identifying them opened the door to intervention. HPD swiftly worked with prosecutors and the exchange’s compliance team to freeze the suspects’ accounts and secure a seizure warrant.

Operational impact

Approximately USD 300,000 in suspect funds were frozen, and further investigation confirmed at least USD 150,000 came directly from the victim’s payments — which was ultimately returned to the elderly victim. The case also became a catalyst for prevention — leading HPD to launch an educational campaign aimed at helping countless other residents recognize and avoid similar online scams. As Detective Taylor emphasized, none of this would have been possible without modern blockchain tracing. Manually unraveling the transactions would have taken weeks or months, but with advanced tools, the entire money trail was visualized in minutes.

Operational utility

This case demonstrated how a well-trained local unit can leverage blockchain intelligence to rapidly triage a complex fraud. With TRM, a single detective was able to unravel a million-dollar scam spanning many transactions — work that otherwise could have taken months. HPD’s success shows that with the right tools and training, even one skilled investigator can have outsized impact against crypto fraud.

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3. Uncovering and dismantling transnational scam and money laundering networks

Criminal enterprises are increasingly operating as transnational networks that blend cyber fraud with money laundering, often using cryptocurrency to obfuscate their illicit activities. Blockchain intelligence is a force-multiplier for uncovering and disrupting money laundering operations: it enables investigators to link what might seem like isolated incidents to larger global networks, trace funds that cross multiple countries, and identify the key players and infrastructure (exchanges, mixers, money mules) these illicit actors rely on. By following blockchain trails, police can turn a single victim’s case into an unraveling of an entire organized crime ring — working with international partners to dismantle the operation at its roots.

How the Royal Thai Police used blockchain intelligence to uncover an international pig butchering ring | Bangkok, Thailand

What happened

In 2022, a single pig-butchering scam complaint in Thailand led the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) of the Royal Thai Police (RTP) to uncover a massive transnational fraud syndicate. An initial victim came forward about a crypto investment romance scam — sadly a common occurrence during the COVID-19 pandemic. CCIB launched Operation “Trust No One,” a large-scale investigation into what turned out to be an international crime syndicate operating across multiple Asian nations and impacting victims in Thailand, the US, and the UK. 

Leveraging TRM Forensics, CCIB investigators followed the crypto transactions from the initial victim’s wallet outward, identifying additional suspect wallets and linked exchanges at each step. Each new address revealed more victims — ultimately, dozens were identified. As the network’s sprawling scope came into focus, CCIB coordinated closely with overseas public and private partners — including Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and Binance — to carry out their investigation. Armed with intelligence from their blockchain tracing efforts and partner agencies, CCIB was able to identify and apprehend the primary suspects behind the scheme.

Operational impact

The ripple effects of this operation have been profound. Thai authorities dismantled the multinational scam syndicate, arresting its leaders and securing a 28-year prison sentence for the primary perpetrator. Approximately USD 20 million in stolen funds were frozen and are in the process of being returned, providing restitution to victims on multiple continents. 

Dismantling the network also established a new level of confidence and capability within the Thai police. CCIB’s investment in blockchain intelligence transformed the unit from initially struggling with crypto’s complexity to proactively hunting down illicit networks. By 2024, CCIB was handling ~800 crypto-related complaints per day and had become a regional center of excellence. Today, they even invite other police forces to their “crypto war room” to train and share knowledge on crypto investigations. 

Operational utility

By using blockchain intelligence to visualize complex fund flows and tie them to real exchanges and identities, CCIB was able to see the “big picture” and coordinate an international response. The case showcased how blockchain intelligence helps law enforcement unmask vast organized crime networks that exploit online anonymity — turning the transparency of the blockchain into a tool to interdict criminal activity. This case also highlights the power of collaboration: by sharing intelligence across agencies and borders, the Royal Thai Police modeled a unified, intelligence-driven approach to transnational crypto crime.

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4. Securing major convictions in crypto-based money laundering cases

Beyond tracing funds and disrupting ongoing crimes, blockchain intelligence is also proving vital in the prosecution of crypto-related offenses. 

As cryptocurrencies become intertwined with organized crime and large-scale money laundering, successfully convicting offenders often hinges on being able to clearly articulate what happened on the blockchain and translate it into compelling evidence. Blockchain intelligence provides law enforcement teams the forensic rigor and visual clarity needed to build airtight cases — enabling investigators to document exactly how illicit funds flowed through wallets and exchanges, and giving expert witnesses clear visual diagrams they can explain in court. This capability is critical for securing convictions (and guilty pleas) in cases that might otherwise seem too technically convoluted to confidently bring to trial.

How Victoria Police used blockchain intelligence to translate complex blockchain activity and secure convictions in court | Melbourne, Australia

What happened

It started with an anomaly: financial regulators at AUSTRAC flagged that a single individual in Melbourne had become the single largest recipient of cash deposits at Bitcoin ATMs in all of Australia over the course of a year — hinting at a major laundering scheme. Detectives at Victoria Police soon uncovered a Chinese organized crime syndicate that was offering cash-to-crypto money laundering services to other criminal groups, for a fee. The syndicate initially laundered money by “smurfing” cash through dozens of bank accounts and underground remittance channels, sending funds offshore and back to make dirty cash appear clean. But at some point, they pivoted to using cryptocurrency for greater efficiency and anonymity. Large amounts of criminal proceeds were being converted to crypto (notably stablecoins like USDT and USDC on Ethereum) and funneled through exchanges and private wallets.

Victoria Police’s State Anti-gangs Division took on the case under the code name “Operation Taipan.” By late 2021, they executed raids on the suspects, seizing cash, luxury cars, and digital devices. However, a significant challenge remained: analyzing the troves of blockchain data to actually trace the crypto assets and tie them to the suspects. Blockchain intelligence experts from TRM Labs worked alongside Victoria Police investigators to map out millions in cryptocurrency flows tied to the syndicate. Every transfer, wallet, and exchange account used to wash the money was charted, creating a clear evidential trail and revealing how the syndicate layered transactions through shell companies, multiple exchanges, and unhosted wallets to obscure the origin of funds.

Operational impact

This comprehensive blockchain forensics operation proved pivotal when the case went to court. By late 2024, faced with the formidable evidence traced on-chain, three members of the syndicate pleaded guilty to laundering over AUD 30 million in criminal proceeds. All three received lengthy prison sentences — marking Australia’s first successful convictions for crypto-based money laundering and  sending a strong message that crypto-enabled money laundering will be punished. The case also set a legal precedent in Australia — expert blockchain forensic evidence (supported by testimony from private sector experts) proved that complex crypto transactions can be made understandable in court and used to dismantle sophisticated laundering operations.

Operational utility

This case highlights how blockchain intelligence can transform overwhelming volumes of blockchain data into actionable, defensible insights. Operation Taipan stands as proof that even highly sophisticated crypto-enabled money laundering schemes can be successfully prosecuted when agencies embrace cutting-edge investigative tools and public-private partnerships.

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Training, tools, and partnerships

Successfully leveraging blockchain intelligence isn’t just about having the right software — it also requires training investigators, integrating new tools with existing workflows, and building partnerships for intelligence sharing. Forward-thinking agencies are creating an entire ecosystem around blockchain intelligence, ensuring it integrates seamlessly into their day-to-day operations.

Integrated digital forensics | TRM Labs + Magnet Forensics

Modern investigations demand a tight linkage between traditional digital forensics (like mobile phone or computer analysis) and on-chain analytics. TRM invests heavily in these kinds of partnerships that help broaden the scope of intelligence available to investigators. 

For example, the integration between TRM Labs and Magnet Forensics brings TRM’s blockchain intelligence into Magnet’s widely used GrayKey mobile device analysis tool. This bridge between on-device data and on-chain evidence is crucial, as many criminals leave crypto clues on their phones — be it a wallet address in a text message, a screenshot of a crypto app, or a seed phrase in a note. 

Now, when an investigator unlocks a suspect’s smartphone using Magnet GrayKey, they can immediately run a crypto artifact scan powered by TRM’s BLOCKINT API. If a Bitcoin or Ethereum address is discovered on the device, the tool will instantly display that address’s current balance, its transaction history summary, and any risk flags (for instance, links to known illicit entities or mixers) without ever leaving the GrayKey interface. With one click, the investigator can pivot from this triage view into the full TRM Forensics platform to trace the wallet’s transactions in depth, identify if it interacted with an exchange or darknet market, and initiate appropriate action (like freezing funds or obtaining account owner info).

Thanks to strategic integrations like this, what used to require manually exporting data and separately analyzing it on a blockchain platform can now be done in minutes within a unified workflow, dramatically shortening investigators’ response times.

Crowdsourced intelligence | Chainabuse

Law enforcement can also benefit from open-source intelligence (OSINT) gathered from the broader community. Chainabuse, a public scam-reporting platform run by TRM, serves as a multi-chain repository where anyone can report crypto frauds or suspicious wallet addresses. It has become a powerful tool for proactive discovery and the investigation of crypto crimes. Chainabuse functions as a centralized public database of crypto scam reports, which investigators can search and analyze for leads. By late 2024, Chainabuse was even named an official reporting partner for Operation Shamrock, an initiative aimed at helping law enforcement more effectively seize illicit funds from scammers. 

With intelligence from Chainabuse, investigators can triage cases faster and connect related incidents into broader fraud networks. Chainabuse also enables investigators to determine if any crypto addresses in their case have already been flagged by multiple independent victims on Chainabuse, potentially pointing to additional victims or co-conspirators. This kind of shared early-warning system can alert agencies to new scam trends or crime rings that are affecting their jurisdiction.

Training and knowledge-sharing | TRM Academy

TRM Academy is the TRM Labs training arm — offering a full suite of live and on-demand courses and certifications to help officers and analysts develop both fundamental crypto knowledge and advanced investigative skills. These trainings are led by experienced practitioners — including former federal law enforcement agents, analysts, and prosecutors — to ensure relevance to real casework. 

TRM Academy’s offerings are suited for investigators at every stage of their crypto journey.

• The Crypto Fundamentals Certification (CFC) introduces foundational concepts necessary for understanding the crypto landscape
• The Certified Investigator (CI) course equips officers with essential crypto investigative techniques
• The Advanced Crypto Investigator (ACI) program builds advanced skills for handling complex cases
• The Digital Forensics and Cryptocurrency (DFC) course offers specialized instruction in crypto-specific forensic methodologies for professionals addressing the technical demands of digital evidence 

These certifications are designed to ensure that law enforcement personnel are equipped with the practical tools and knowledge required for effective, credible investigations in today’s evolving digital environments — and our repository of courses is always growing.

Public-private partnerships

Robust partnerships between law enforcement and private industry are also critical in amplifying the impact of blockchain intelligence. To effectively meet the speed and velocity of crypto-enabled crime,  information-sharing arrangements where exchanges, blockchain analytics firms, and agencies coordinate in real time to freeze or track illicit funds are crucial. 

In several of the case studies we explored earlier, we saw how quickly an exchange’s compliance team or a blockchain company’s investigative unit could assist law enforcement in identifying suspects and halting criminal cash-outs. Formalized initiatives like AUSTRAC’s Fintel Alliance in Australia and various federal cryptocurrency task forces in the US bring together banks, crypto businesses, analytics experts, and law enforcement to exchange intelligence and red-flag data. These partnerships recognize that no single entity has a complete view of crypto-enabled criminal networks — but by pooling information, investigators can share mission-critical insights and piece together a much fuller picture. This tight collaboration has increasingly led to real-time interdictions and better outcomes for victims.

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The ROI of blockchain intelligence 

Blockchain intelligence isn’t a “nice to have.” It’s a critical resource that should be part of every investigator’s tool kit — and it yields an outsized return in outcomes. Global agencies have collectively recovered billions of dollars in illicit assets using blockchain intelligence — representing an estimated 100x (or more) return on investment when measured against the cost of these tools. Beyond the numbers, adopting blockchain intelligence also boosts public trust: communities see that their police are capable of solving complex, highly technical crimes and protecting victims in the digital age.

Getting started with blockchain intelligence

• Assess your agency’s readiness: Evaluate whether your investigators are equipped to trace, freeze, and recover crypto assets in investigations. Identify gaps in tools, expertise, and processes that need to be addressed.
• Invest in blockchain intelligence tools: Prioritize acquiring or expanding access to blockchain analytics platforms and forensic software like TRM Labs (and ensure they integrate with your existing digital forensics workflows).
• Prioritize training and collaboration: Enroll officers in blockchain investigation training (such as programs through TRM Academy) to build in-house expertise. Encourage participation in inter-agency working groups and information-sharing initiatives like TRM’s LEO Labs. Learning best practices from peers — whether federal agencies or international partners — accelerates your team’s capabilities.
• Join the global network of blockchain intelligence adopters: Hundreds of law enforcement agencies worldwide already trust blockchain intelligence solutions from TRM Labs to safeguard financial integrity and community safety. By partnering with public and private sector leaders and fellow agencies, you amplify your reach and stay ahead of emerging threats.

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About TRM Labs

TRM Labs provides blockchain analytics solutions to help law enforcement and national security agencies, financial institutions, and cryptocurrency businesses detect, investigate, and disrupt crypto-related fraud and financial crime. TRM’s blockchain intelligence platform includes solutions to trace the source and destination of funds, identify illicit activity, build cases, and construct an operating picture of threats. TRM is trusted by leading agencies and businesses worldwide who rely on TRM to enable a safer, more secure crypto ecosystem. TRM is based in San Francisco, CA, and is hiring across engineering, product, sales, and data science. To learn more, visit www.trmlabs.com.