Aliaksandr Klimenka, a Belarusian and Cypriot nationwide, has been indicted within the U.S. for his involvement in a global cybercrime cash laundering operation.
The U.S. Division of Justice announcement says that Klimenka managed the unlicensed digital forex alternate BTC-e, the know-how companies firm Gentle-FX, and the monetary firm FX Open.
The indictment alleges that Klimenka, by means of these corporations, facilitated transactions linked to varied cybercrimes, together with ransomware, id theft, illicit substance trafficking, scams, and hacking.
BTC-e was a cryptocurrency buying and selling platform that primarily served the Russian market, with U.S. regulation enforcement seizing it in 2017 following the arrest of its proprietor, Alexander Vinnik, in Greece.
The U.S. DoJ alleged again then that the platform was used to launder funds stolen throughout the hack of Japanese crypto alternate platform Mt. Gox, in addition to ransom funds for the Locky, Cerber, NotPetya, WannaCry, and Spora ransomware operations.
The platform had a notable presence within the U.S. however didn’t register as a cash companies enterprise with the U.S. Division of Treasury, didn’t require the “know your buyer” (KYC) and id verification, and did not have any anti-money laundering mechanisms in place.
Klimenka, now 42 years previous, managed BTC-e between 2011 and July 2017 till Vinnik’s arrest and the next takedown of the positioning.
Based on the most recent announcement, Klimenka managed and maintained the U.S.-based servers that supported BTC-e’s operations by means of his Gentle-EX firm.
The person was arrested on the request of the US in Latvia on December 21, 2023, and made his first look in a San Francisco courtroom yesterday.
For the costs of cash laundering conspiracy and working an unlicensed cash companies enterprise, Klimenka faces a potential most sentence of 25 years in jail.
