Ex-Military Officer Breaks Into Singapore Condo To Steal $1.7 Million From Friend’s Cryptocurrency Cold Wallet Using Seed Phrase

Military Officer Breaks Into Condominium To Steal $1.7 Million in Cryptocurrency

A 34-year-old former captain of Singapore’s Naval Diving Unit, Teo Rong Xuan, has admitted to breaking into a man’s condominium in December 2022 and stealing sensitive information linked to his cryptocurrency holdings.

Teo, who left the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) in 2023, used the victim’s seed phrase—a set of 24 words and serial numbers—to access the victim's cold wallet.

He then transferred 1.7 million USDT, an amount equivalent to US$1.7 million (S$2.2 million), into his own accounts.

The funds were reportedly spent on luxury watches, gambling debts, and mortgage payments.

Teo Rong Xuan admitted to stealing 1.7 million USDT from a victim’s cold wallet after gaining physical access to the property. (Source: The Straits Times)

How The Theft Unfolded During A Friendly Visit

Court documents reveal that Teo met the 30-year-old victim through a mutual friend, identified in court as “Zee,” in June 2022.

The victim had deposited 1.7 million USDT into a “Ledger Nano X” hardware wallet, a cold wallet kept offline for security.

Source: Ledger

After writing the seed phrase on paper and storing it at home, the victim invited Teo and Zee to watch a football match on 18 December 2022.

Around 10.30pm, Teo arrived and later asked the victim for his condominium access card to fetch Zee.

The victim complied.

Teo, however, did not return the card.

On 31 December, while the victim had left his unit to meet friends at Marina Bay, Teo entered the condominium using the card, located the paper with the seed phrase, took a photograph, and left.

He later accessed the victim’s wallet from home on 1 January 2023, transferring the entire 1.7 million USDT to his own cryptocurrency accounts.

Luxury Purchases And Gambling Exposed By Court

The court heard that Teo spent part of the stolen funds on luxury watches, settled mortgage payments, and financed gambling activities.

Approximately 100,000 USDT was transferred to an illegal gambling site, while around 500,000 USDT was used for further cryptocurrency transactions involving gambling platforms.

The remaining 1.1 million USDT was converted to US dollars and deposited into his bank account.

Discovery And Investigation Lead To Confession

The victim realised the theft on 23 March 2023 and contacted the police, also engaging blockchain security firm SlowMist to trace the missing funds.

Investigators found that some of the stolen USDT had been traced to Teo’s wallets.

When confronted, Teo admitted his actions, citing financial losses from the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX Trading in 2022 as a motive.

Legal Proceedings And SAF Response

Teo pleaded guilty on 1 October 2025 to one count each of housebreaking and misusing a computer system, along with multiple counts related to dealing with ill-gotten gains.

The Ministry of Defence confirmed his discharge from the SAF, stating:

“The SAF holds its service personnel to high standards of discipline and integrity. Service personnel who commit offences will be dealt with in accordance with the law.”

Teo is scheduled for sentencing on 14 November 2025.

Cold Wallet Security Can Be Compromised By Human Error

Coinlive views this case as a clear reminder that even offline cryptocurrency storage is vulnerable when physical security and personal trust are breached.

While hardware wallets are designed to remain offline, this theft shows that access to seed phrases can compromise even the most secure systems.

Cold wallets may be technologically robust, but human error and trust remain critical vulnerabilities.

The incident highlights the need for users to carefully balance personal trust, physical safeguards, and digital security when protecting their cryptocurrency holdings.