XRP Theft Case Takes Twist as Accused Files Countersuit

A man accused of taking millions of dollars’ worth of XRP from Nancy Jones, the widow of country singer George Jones, is now suing her, arguing the assets were shared wealth and that she defamed him. Rolling Stone reported the countersuit was filed on Friday.

Kirk West, 58, of Nashville, was arrested last year after authorities alleged he stole US$400K (AU$612K) in cash and more than 5.5 million XRP. At current prices cited in the report, the XRP is valued at more than US$11.6 million (AU$17.7 million).

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West Disputes Claims on Stolen Funds

West’s filing disputes the theft claim and says he should receive half of the assets accumulated during their relationship, including crypto holdings, US$5 million (AU$7.6 million) in gold and silver, and US$1 million (AU$1.5 million) in cash, according to Rolling Stone.

The relationship began after George Jones died in 2013, court documents cited by Nashville TV station WKRN said. West initially approached Nancy Jones about buying the Jones home and later became romantically involved with her. 

The records also describe West as presenting himself as a “crypto expert” and persuading Jones to buy tokens including XRP, Ether, Dogecoin, Shiba Inu and Stellar, while an affidavit tied to a restraining order alleges he also took some of her ETH and SHIB.

Jones’ claim centers on a missing Ledger hardware wallet that held the keys to her crypto, which she said disappeared after she removed West from her home last year. The report said she recovered just over 5 million XRP with legal help, but about 483,000 XRP, now valued at more than US$1 million (AU$1.5 million), was still unrecovered.

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