The Justice Department charged two Russian nationals with the hacking of the crashing Mt. Gox cryptocurrency exchange, one of the world's first, largest and most publicized allegedly. bitcoins muggings
Alexey Bilyuchenko, 43, and Aleksandr Verner, 29, were charged with conspiring to launder approximately 647,000 bitcoins from their Mt. Gox hack, which collapsed after losing what was then worth around $500 million in cryptocurrencies, the Justice Department said.
โAs alleged, Alexey Bilyuchenko and Aleksandr Verner thought they could circumvent the law by using sophisticated hacks to steal and launder massive amounts of cryptocurrency, a novel technology at the time, but the unsealed charges demonstrate our ability to doggedly pursue these suspected criminals, no, no matter how complex their schemes, until they are brought to justice,' US Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement.
The event was one of the first signs of how cryptocurrencies from vulnerable exchanges users employ to transfer their digital assets to traditional cash were compromised cybercriminals. Since then, the industry has suffered a series of massive thefts.
Alexey Bilyuchenko, 43, and Aleksandr Verner, 29, were charged with conspiring to launder approximately 647,000 bitcoins from their Mt. Gox hack. Their crimes began in September 2011 when Bilyuchenko, Verner, and other co-conspirators allegedly gained unauthorized access to the Mt. Gox server. Between September 2011 and May 2014, they transferred 647,000 bitcoins, or $16.5 billion, into their accounts.
Their crimes began in September 2011 when Bilyuchenko, Verner, and other co-conspirators allegedly "gained unauthorized access to the server containing the cryptocurrency wallets for Mt. Gox," which was the world's largest bitcoin exchange at the time.
Mount Gox. Stored users' cryptocurrency wallets and corresponding private keys that were used to transfer private funds, which were stored on a server in Japan, the Justice Department said.
The couple hacked into the system and used the wallets to transfer money to their own accounts between September 2011 and May 2014, transferring 647,000 bitcoins, which is equivalent to more than $16.5 billion.
In April 2012, Bilyuchenko and Verner entered into a fraudulent contract with a New York Bitcoin broker that allegedly "made periodic requests to the owner and operator of the New York Bitcoin broker to make large electronic transfers to various offshore bank accounts, even in the name of shell corporations, controlled by Bilyuchenko, Verner and their co-conspirators.'
Between March 2012 and April 2013, $6.6 million was transferred to offshore accounts, the Justice Department said.
After the theft was revealed, Mt. Gox. close. In July 2017, the police shut down the Bilyuchenko and Verner operation.
In exchange for the transfer, the New York broker received 'credit' and Bilyuchenko, and Verner laundered 300,000 Bitcoins, or $7.6 million USD.
After the theft was revealed, Mt. Gox. close. In July 2017, the police shut down the Bilyuchenko and Verner operation.
Bilyuchenko was a key associate of Alexander Vinnik, a Russian cybercrime kingpin who was arrested in Greece in 2017, convicted of money laundering in France three years later, and is now awaiting trial in California on charges of managing BTC-e, a now defunct Russian company. redeem the Department of Justice accused of catering to 'cybercriminals around the world'.
When Vinnik was arrested, Bilyuchenko, who was staying elsewhere in Greece, narrowly avoided arrest by destroying his computer, throwing it into the sea and immediately flying back to Moscow, the BBC previously reported.
The Justice Department said that Bilyuchenko is also charged with conspiring with Vinnik to operate BTC-e from 2011 to 2017.
