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PRAGUE, Czech Republic: Czech Justice Minister Pavel Blažek resigned this week because of a scandal involving bitcoins.

Earlier this year, his ministry accepted a bitcoin donation and sold the bitcoins for around 1 billion Czech koruna (over US$45 million). The opposition criticized Blažek because the bitcoins came from a man who had been convicted of drug dealing and other crimes.

Blažek said he didn’t know anything wrong had happened, but he stepped down to avoid causing problems for the government. The Czech government is led by Prime Minister Petr Fiala and is made up of four political parties. Fiala said he respected Blažek’s decision and believed he had good intentions.

Blažek was a close ally of Fiala and a key member of their conservative Civic Democratic Party. It is not yet known who will replace him.

The scandal began on May 28 when the Ministry of Justice posted a message on the social media site X (formerly Twitter). The post said the ministry had auctioned nearly 500 bitcoins and earned about 1 billion Czech koruna (around 40 million euros). Blažek said the money would be used to improve the justice system, fight drug use in prisons, and build homes for prison staff.

But this week, the news outlet Deník N reported that the Bitcoin donation came from Tomáš Jirčovský, a well-known criminal. He was sentenced in 2017 for stealing money, selling drugs, and owning weapons illegally. He also ran an illegal website on the dark web called Sheep Marketplace, which was used to sell illicit goods.

The opposition accused Blažek of possible money laundering since it was unclear where the bitcoins came from or why they were donated. The police organized crime unit is now investigating the case.

This scandal comes just a few months before the Czech parliamentary election on October 3 and 4. The opposition party ANO, led by former Prime Minister Andrej Babiš, is currently expected to win the election.

When asked about the situation, Blažek said he hadn’t been interested in the background of the donation, even though the criminal case had happened years ago.