DOJ Charges Russian Crypto Mixer Operators in $1B Money Laundering Scheme

DOJ Charges Russian Crypto Mixer Operators in $1B Money Laundering Scheme

DOJ Charges Three Russians in Cryptocurrency Mixer Operation

The U.S. Department of Justice has indicted three Russian citizens for operating illegal cryptocurrency mixing services Blender.io and Sinbad.io, which were extensively used by ransomware groups and North Korean hackers for money laundering operations.

Roman Vitalyevich Ostapenko, Alexander Evgenievich Oleynik, and Anton Vyachlavovich Tarasov face charges of operating unlicensed money-transmitting businesses and conspiracy to commit money laundering. The services they operated allowed criminals to obscure cryptocurrency trails by mixing assets across multiple wallet addresses for a commission.

Notable Operations:
– Blender.io (2018-2022): Facilitated the laundering of $500 million from the $617 million Axie Infinity Ronin bridge hack
– Sinbad.io: Emerged after Blender.io’s closure, offering similar services until its shutdown in November 2023

Law Enforcement Actions:
– Both services were sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury’s OFAC
– International operation involving U.S., Netherlands, and Poland seized Sinbad.io’s domains
– Oleynik and Ostapenko were arrested on December 1, 2024
– Tarasov remains at large

The indictment represents a significant step in dismantling cybercriminal infrastructure used for laundering illicit cryptocurrency gains and protecting national security interests.

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