Even if the FBI is not able to transfer the money, merely having possession of the wallet file itself is enough to prevent the coins being spent.
Ugh, no. Having the file means you can transfer out the bitcoins. Anyone having the file can transfer out the bitcoins, so the FBI securing that wallet doesn't lock down those bitcoins.
The FBI cannot properly "seize" the bitcoins unless they use the wallet to transfer the coins to a fresh address they make and control. And I'm not sure that traditional seizure laws allow that, because AFAIK we've never had this scenario before.
Ugh, no. Having the file means you can transfer out the bitcoins. Anyone having the file can transfer out the bitcoins, so the FBI securing that wallet doesn't lock down those bitcoins.
The FBI cannot properly "seize" the bitcoins unless they use the wallet to transfer the coins to a fresh address they make and control. And I'm not sure that traditional seizure laws allow that, because AFAIK we've never had this scenario before.