Arrested Founder of Bitzlato Exchange Asks Crypto Community for Help CryptoBlog
The founder of crypto exchange Bitzlato, who is facing a money laundering case in the United States, is seeking support from community members. Anatoly Legkodymov was arrested in January for his role in the trading platform that allegedly processed millions of dollars in illicit funds.
Bitzlato Founder Seeks US Bail Bonds
Anatoly Legkodymov, one of the founders and majority owner of Russia-linked cryptocurrency exchange Bitzlato, turned to the crypto community, hoping to find US citizens who would agree to vouch for his release on bail.
The Hong Kong-registered trading platform was disrupted in mid-January by law enforcement in Europe, where French investigators seized its servers and hot wallet while several of its employees and executives were detained in d ‘other countries.
Legkodymov, a Russian national residing in China, was apprehended in Miami for money laundering charges. The US Department of Justice says its exchange transferred at least $700 million in criminal proceeds from ransomware actors, darknet markets and crypto pyramids.
This week, Legkodymov made his plea for help via crypto media. US law allows defendants to be released before a decision is made in their case, provided they find guarantors for their bail, explained his lawyers, quoted by the Russian media Bits.media. A group of Russian associates urged those willing to help reach out on Telegram, saying:
The crypto community knows Anatoly as a decent, law-abiding person and wants to help him get out of jail on bail until the trial is over.
A user by the name of “Anatoly Legkodymov” has been active on the Bitcointalk.org forum since 2011, the report notes, as well as on the Bits.media forum since 2016, when the crypto entrepreneur and his partners started their business activity under the name Changebot which later became Bitzlato.
Legkodymov first appeared in federal court in New York in mid-March, when he was taken into custody without bail. The Russian denies US charges of money laundering.
Another Bitzlato co-founder, Anton Shkurenko, was briefly detained, questioned and released by Russian police in February. In a Youtube interview, he revealed that Bitzlato intended to move to Russia and restart operations from there. Earlier this week, the exchange reportedly restored partial access to users BTC sales.
Do you think US authorities will release Bitzlato founder Anatoly Legkodymov on bail? Share your thoughts on the case in the comments section below.
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Arrested Founder of Bitzlato Exchange Asks Crypto Community for Help CryptoBlog
