Alexander Vinnik, an alleged operator of BTC-e—a digital currency telephone substitution service that has been inwards functioning since 2011 but seized yesteryear the government correct later Vinnik's arrest inwards a beachside hamlet inwards northern Hellenic Republic inwards belatedly July 2016 at the asking of US law enforcement authorities.
Since his arrest, Moscow has also requested Vinnik locomote returned home, equally it has previously done alongside other Russian nationals wanted yesteryear the United States.
However, the Greek courtroom ruled Midweek (4 October) to extradite Vinnik to the U.S., where he volition facial expression upwards trial on the charges alongside the functioning of an unlicensed money service business, money laundering, conspiracy to commit money laundering, as well as engaging inwards unlawful monetary transactions.
U.S. government suspect Vinnik was the i responsible for facilitating crimes ranging from reckoner hacking to drug trafficking since at to the lowest degree 2011 through his digital Bitcoin exchange.
U.S. government also linked the accused to the failure of the once-very pop Japanese bitcoin telephone substitution Mt. Gox, which was nigh downwards inwards 2014 next a massive serial of mysterious robberies, which totalled at to the lowest degree $375 i M 1000 inwards Bitcoin.
The government believe Vinnik "obtained" funds from the hacker or insider who stole bitcoins from Mt. Gox as well as sent them to a bitcoin wallet controlled yesteryear Vinnik, who intentionally laundered them through BTC-e, over a menstruation of 3 years.
"After the coins entered Vinnik's wallets, well-nigh were moved to BTC-e as well as presumably sold off or laundered (BTC-e money codes were a pop choice). In full roughly 300,000 BTC ended upwards on BTC-e," according to WizSec, a Japanese safety theatre that has long been investigating the Mt. Gox case.
"To locomote clear, this investigation turned upwards evidence to position Vinnik non equally a hacker/thief but equally a money launderer; his arrest tidings also suggests this is what he is beingness suspected for. He may direct maintain only bought inexpensive coins from thieves as well as offered a laundering service."
While Greek constabulary described Vinnik equally "an internationally sought 'mastermind' of a criminal offense organisation," US government defendant him of facilitating crimes including hacking, identity theft, taxation refund fraud, populace corruption as well as drug trafficking.
Soon later the Greek courtroom decision, Vinnik's lawyers appealed to the Supreme Court.
"We direct maintain taken immediate activity as well as appealed the ruling, as well as the example volition locomote examined yesteryear the criminal partition of the Supreme Court," Vinnik's lawyer, Alexandros Lykourezos, said, equally quoted yesteryear The News Tribune.
If extradited to the United States, Vinnik faces upwards to 55 years inwards prison, along alongside a $500,000 fine or twice the value of the belongings involved inwards the transaction for each count.
However, he has denied all charges against him, proverb he was exactly a technical consultant to BTC-e as well as non its operator.
"I direct maintain zero to produce alongside what I am defendant of," he told the judges.
Vinnik also claimed that the laptop seized yesteryear the Greek government during his arrest was inwards no agency related to his job, adding that it alone contained children's cartoons for his family.
Vinnik is trying to provide to his habitation inwards Russia, where he is facing lesser fraud charges, although a hearing engagement for the Russian extradition asking has non silent been set.
