Robert Barr jailed for prison-directed crypto theft plot

Robert Barr was sentenced to eight years in prison after directing an attempted cryptocurrency theft from HMP Edinburgh, while two accomplices received prison terms for their roles in the scheme. Scotland’s High Court of Justiciary sentenced Barr, 29, Sean Favier, 26, to four years, and Iain Doyle, 37, to five years. All three pleaded guilty to involvement in serious organised crime connected to the attempted theft.

The court account said the plot targeted cryptocurrency worth up to £2 million at a home in Midlothian. Barr was serving a 21-month sentence for fraud at HMP Edinburgh and directed the scheme using an illicit phone, according to the judge’s account.

Favier and Doyle first entered the property in January 2024 and took a hardware wallet, the court heard. They could not access the funds without its PIN. The pair returned on April 17, 2024, but the residents saw them on a doorbell camera and refused to open the door, thwarting the attempt.

The plan for the later attempt was to get the resident to use a computer program called AnyDesk, which would have allowed Barr to control the computer remotely and move the cryptocurrency, according to the court account. The judge said...