Alleged Users in Internal Chat Room of Bitzlato Recognized as Criminals.
BROOKLYN, NY – A federal charge was issued in Brooklyn court today against Anatoly Legkodymov, Russian native and the founder of Bitzlato Ltd. (Bitzlato), an international cryptocurrency exchange and streaming money transmission service. The accusation was that he conducted money transmissions without a license. He was detained last night in Miami and is expected to appear later today in the court of the US District of Southern Florida.
Breon Peace, US Attorney of the Eastern District of New York; Lisa O. Monaco, Assistant Attorney General of the Department of Justice; Kenneth A. Polite, Assistant Attorney General of the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice; and Brian C. Turner, Associate Deputy Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), along with Michael J. Driscoll, Assistant Director In Charge, FBI, New York Field Office, jointly announced the arrest and charges.
“Cryptocurrency trading entities are not above the law and their owners are not beyond our reach,” said US Attorney Peace. “As asserted, Bitzlato sold itself as a crypto exchange with no questions asked and obtained hundreds of millions of dollars in deposits in return. The suspect is now paying the price for the wrong role his firm played in the cryptocurrency ecosystem.”
“Today, the Department of Justice has given a major blow to the crypto-crime environment,” declared Assistant Attorney General Monaco. “Overnight, in collaboration with our US and foreign partners, we managed to disrupt Bitzlato, an engine for money laundering based in Switzerland that powered a high-tech crypto-crime hub. It also led to the arrest of its founder, Russian citizen Anatoly Legkodymov. Today’s action sends a clear message that if you do not comply with our laws, you can expect to face criminal charges in a US court.”
“The FBI will keep on pursuing actors who try to hide their criminal activity behind computers and use methods such as cryptocurrency to evade law enforcement,” stated FBI Deputy Assistant Director Turner. “Along with our federal and international partners, we will relentlessly work to disrupt and eliminate these criminal organizations. Today’s arrest is a reminder to all those involved in such activities that they will face consequences and risks.”
“As alleged, Legkodymov knowingly allowed Bitzlato to become a safe haven for funds used for criminal activities, including ransomware and drug trafficking,” said The Deputy Attorney General Polite. “The great efforts of the National Crypto Enforcement Team to disrupt Bitzlato and arrest the defendant show that we will continue to work with our partners, both domestic and international, to combat cryptocurrency-driven crime, even when it transcends international borders.”
“As alleged in the complaint, Bitzlato claimed that they did not accept US users, but they were able to do significant business with US customers, and their customer service representatives often told users that they could transfer funds from US financial institutions,” said Asst. US Attorney McConnell. “In addition, Legkodymov, who managed Bitzlato from Miami in 2022 and 2023, received reports that there was significant traffic to Bitzlato’s website from US-based Internet Protocol addresses, with more than 250 million visits in July 2022.”
The complaint is only an accusation. The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty. If found guilty of operating an illegal money transfer business, he faces a maximum of five years in prison.
Simultaneously with today’s arrest, in collaboration with French authorities and Europol partners in Spain, Portugal and Cyprus, Bitzlato’s digital infrastructure was seized and enforcement actions taken.
The investigation is being jointly prosecuted by the Homeland Security Cyber Crime Section, the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, and the National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team (NCET). NCET trial attorneys Alexander Mindlin, Scott Meisler and Matthew Blackwood, Assistant US Attorneys Artie McConnell and Mary Clare McMahon, with the help of paralegals from the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division, are prosecuting the case.
The NCET was created in October 2021 to combat the growing illicit use of digital assets and cryptocurrencies. Under the supervision of the Criminal Division, the NCET supports and conducts investigations into individuals and organizations that use digital assets to facilitate and commit a range of crimes. A particular focus is on virtual currency exchanges, mixers and turners, infrastructure and service providers. NCET also establishes strategic priorities for digital asset technologies and identifies areas where increased investigation and prosecution focus is needed. It also leads the department’s efforts to cooperate with domestic and international government agencies as well as the private sector in investigating and prosecuting crimes involving cryptocurrency or digital assets.
The accused:
ANATOLY LEGKODYMOV also known as “Anatolii Legkodymov”, “Gandalf” and “Tolik”
Age: 40
Residence: Shenzhen, People’s
