Who Is Anatoly Legkodymov Bitzlato Crypto Founder Arrested? Charged With $700m Financial Crimes

Who Is Anatoly Legkodymov Bitzlato Crypto Founder Arrested? Anatoly Legkodymov, a Chinese citizen, was detained in Miami on Tuesday night and was due to appear in court on a charge of running an illegal money transfer business.

The creator of the cryptocurrency exchange Bitzlato is Legkodymov.

Bitzlato is a Hong Kong-incorporated company that served as a “key financial resource” for the largest and longest-running dark web market of its kind, Hydra.

The Russian source, on the other hand, asserts that Legkodymov owns 73.4% of Bitzlato.

In Moscow’s Federation Tower tower, Bitzlato maintains a high-floor office that handles transactions of $100,000 or more.

Legkodymov and his main Bitzlato partner are reportedly connected to the Russian distributor of cryptocurrency mining equipment A-HVT.

Legkodymov has a lengthy and troubled career in the cryptocurrency sector spanning more than a decade.

He made his first post on the BitcoinTalk forum in 2011, describing the circumstances that resulted in the loss of more than 50 BTC.

Why Did Anatoly Legkodymov, Bitzlato Crypto Founder Arrested?

Anatoly Legkodymov, Bitzlato Crypto founder and senior Executive, was arrested on Tuesday in Miami.

He was charged with ordering the business to send money obtained from cybercrimes and other illegal conduct intentionally.

Legkodymov did not place the necessary anti-money laundering safeguards and only required minimal user identification.

Anatoly Legkodymov Bitzlato
Anatoly Legkodymov, Bitzlato Crypto founder and senior Executive, was arrested on Tuesday in Miami (Source: Periodicocubano)

He even allows them to provide information belonging to “straw man registrants,” people acting as a cover for the users.

Breon Peace, the U.S. attorney in Brooklyn, where the complaint was obtained, claimed that Bitzlato became a haven for criminals, like drug dealers and ransomware gangs.

They knew that Bitzlato would be unable to reveal its users’ real identities when the authorities tracked their payments to Bitzlato.

According to Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco, Bitzlato, a Company incorporated in Hong Kong, was a “key financial resource” for the Hydra dark web market, the biggest and most established of its kind. 

Who Is Anatoly Legkodymov Bitzlato Crypto Founder Arrested? Charged With $700m Financial Crimes

Anatoly Legkodymov was charged with operating Bitzlato Ltd., an unauthorized money-transfer business.

As the U.S. pursues criminal suspects online, a Russian, Anatoly, was charged with money laundering using a cryptocurrency exchange that reportedly concealed over $700 million in unlawful gambling and drug sales earnings.

Investigators claim that Legkodymov and other Company officials discussed how drug traffickers and other criminals were utilizing their platform to conceal their gains, even referring to some of the funds sent through their portals as “dirty money.”

For this reason, Legkodymov, a founder, faces a maximum sentence of 5 years in jail if found guilty of the crime.

A 40-year-old founder was being held on Wednesday, and it was unknown if he had a representative who could speak for him.

Anatoly Legkodymov Bitzlato
Anatoly Legkodymov was charged with operating Bitzlato Ltd., an unauthorized money-transfer business (Source: CBCNews)

Prosecutors claim that to escape detection; the Company even let users submit fictitious registrant information.

As per the investigators, drug traffickers & online criminals were drawn to Legkodymov and his business because of their anonymity.

Assistant Attorney General Kenneth Polite, in charge of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, announced the charges and arrest.

Polite noted that the international investigation was a significant step in the federal government’s efforts to stop illegal activity throughout the cryptocurrency ecosystem.

Not to mention, the treasury department collaborated with French law enforcement to pinpoint Bitzlato’s alleged illicit activity, which U.S. officials claimed was evidence of international collaboration to remove dishonest players from the cryptocurrency marketplaces.

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Last Updated on January 19, 2023 by 247 News Around The World

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