A Russian national suspected of laundering cryptocurrency ransomware payments on behalf of cybercriminals targeting hospitals has been extradited to the United States from the Netherlands. The man was allegedly involved in the criminal activity for a period of three years before his arrest in Amsterdam last November.
Suspected Russian money launderer returned to US custody by Dutch authorities
Denis Dubnikov, a 29-year-old Russian citizen, was extradited this week from the Netherlands to the United States, where he faces money laundering charges in the District of Oregon, the prosecutor’s office American in Portland and the US Department. of Justice (DOJ) announced.
Dubnikov made his first appearance in federal court on Wednesday and a five-day jury trial is due to begin Oct. 4. In August, a federal grand jury in Portland indicted him for his role in an international crypto money laundering conspiracy.
According to the indictment, the Russian and his accomplices knowingly and intentionally laundered the proceeds of ransomware attacks against individuals and organizations, in the United States and other countries, between at least August 2018 and August 2021.
The perpetrators specifically laundered ransom payments extracted from victims of Ryuk ransomware attacks. First identified four years ago, Ryuk is a type of software that encrypts files and attempts to delete system backups, which has been linked to a Russian ransomware group. Hospitals and healthcare providers in the United States have fallen victim to this as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
In July 2019, Dubnikov allegedly laundered more than $400,000 of Ryuk’s ransom proceeds, the DOJ said in a statement. Those involved in the plot laundered at least $70 million in total. If found guilty, the Russian faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
Denis Dubnikov was arrested in Amsterdam on November 1, 2021. Speaking to Russian media at the time, his lawyer Arkady Bukh alleged that he was “virtually kidnapped” by US law enforcement in Mexico before being arrested. to be transferred to Europe.
Co-founder of coin exchanges Coyote Crypto and Eggchange was first detained at Mexico City airport, where he arrived on vacation, then flew to the Netherlands where he was arrested by the Dutch authorities.
Dubnikov’s extradition follows a similar development in the case of Alexander Vinnik, the alleged operator of the infamous BTC-e cryptocurrency exchange. Vinnik was apprehended in the summer of 2017 in the Greek city of Thessaloniki where he arrived on summer vacation with his family. He was arrested on a warrant from the United States which accuses him of laundering at least $4 billion through the now defunct crypto trading platform.
The Russian computer scientist was first handed over to the French courts, which sentenced him to five years in prison for money laundering. After serving his sentence in France, Vinnik was returned to Greece and extradited to the United States. The hasty transfer has angered his lawyers who believe he will become a “hostage” to the current geopolitical tensions surrounding the war in Ukraine. Meanwhile, Moscow has accused Washington of carrying out a “real hunt for Russian citizens”.
Do you expect other Russians, potentially involved in illegal crypto-related activities, to be extradited to the United States? Tell us in the comments section below.
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