Bitzlato Crypto Exchange Founder Denies Charges
The founder of the Bitzlato crypto exchange, Anatoly Legkodymov, has denied money laundering charges against him in a US court. He is accused of processing more than $700 million through his firm. Relating to these charges, he was arrested on 17 January in Miami.
First court appearance for Bitzlato crypto firm founder
The proceedings of a money laundering case against Legkodymov are ongoing in the federal court of New York. He appeared before the court for the first time on 14 March, 2023, when he denied all the fraud charges.
The court has ordered the detention of Legkodymov without bail for the charges of illegally processing money. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was involved in arresting the crypto exchange founder.
Allegations involve $700 million
Allegedly, the founder of Bitzlato is a Russian national and a resident of China. The FBI detained him for his alleged involvement in illegal money transfers through the exchange.
He is accused of managing a Hong Kong-based cryptocurrency firm and did not ensure anti-money laundering measures were followed.
According to reports, the business allegedly processed around $700 million of illegal funds. The illicit funds are related to numerous crimes like drug trafficking and ransomware.
Bitzlato may also have ties with the darknet market called Hydra, according to further reports. Moreover, another member of a crypto pyramid scheme related to Russia was arrested in the UAE.
Accusations against other members of Bitzlato
More crypto exchange members were also detained in late January. Three members of the executive body were arrested in Europe.
The firm's co-founder, Anton Shkurenko, was also involved in the investigations. In February, he was interrogated by the Russian authorities, but later released. He has also given an interview recently where he mentioned that he would be restoring operations of the firm from Russia.
Author: Wasay Ali
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