Anatoly Legkodymov, the co-founder of Bitzlato cryptocurrency exchange, who is facing charges of money laundering through cryptocurrencies, has requested the court to release him from custody in order to spend time with his family. Legkodymov’s legal team has filed a petition in the federal court of the Eastern District of New York, seeking temporary release for the accused. Legkodymov is willing to comply with any court-imposed conditions, such as house arrest or special supervision, in order to reunite with his wife and three young children. The defense argues that Legkodymov does not pose a threat to society and, considering his behavior and background, is unlikely to flee.
In January 2023, Legkodymov, a Russian national, was arrested in Miami. The US Department of Justice alleges that illegal cryptocurrency transactions worth $700 million were conducted through Bitzlato, a Hong Kong-based service. The exchange reportedly earned around $15 million in proceeds from hackers who utilized malware to demand ransoms.
In addition, US prosecutors claim that Bitzlato provided services globally, including to American customers, without properly adhering to the KYC (Know Your Customer) procedures. Bitzlato’s management denies serving US citizens, but according to US law enforcement, over 250 million users from the United States accessed the exchange in July 2022.
In early December, Anatoly Legkodymov pleaded guilty to money laundering through cryptocurrency assets and agreed to forfeit $23 million as part of a plea agreement.
James Whitfield is markets correspondent at BTCNews. He spent eight years on the equity desk at Bloomberg London before moving to digital assets in 2020, and now leads our daily coverage of spot prices, derivatives and ETF flows. James reads order books for breakfast and has been quoted in the Financial Times, CityAM and CoinDesk. He is a CFA Level III candidate and is based in the City of London.
