Head of notorious cryptocurrency exchange faces up to 40 years in prison

The US Federal Prosecutor’s Office has charged the former head of the OneCoin platform for her involvement in a pyramid scheme. Irina Dilkinskaya faces up to 40 years in prison after being extradited from Bulgaria.

As it became known, on March 21, Dilkinskaya was charged with fraud using electronic means of communication and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Each charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison.

Dilkinskaya is believed to have helped launder more than $ 400 million in OneCoin proceeds. After learning of her accomplice’s arrest, the fraudster destroyed some of the incriminating evidence.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams pointed out the irony in Dilkinskaya’s job title, given the nature of her crimes at OneCoin, emphasizing: «Irina Dilkinskaya, the head of legal for the OneCoin cryptocurrency pyramid scheme, did the exact opposite of her job description and likely enabled OneCoin to launder millions of dollars in illicit proceeds through shell companies.»

As a reminder, OneCoin founder Ruja Ignatova has recently been reported dead. As journalists found out, the founder of the pyramid scheme could have been killed in the fall of 2018. The crypto queen has been missing since 2017 and is on the federal wanted list. Ignatova promised investors to make OneCoin the most popular virtual currency in the world, encouraging users to transfer their savings to OneCoin investment accounts.

According to the documents, Ruzha Ignatova was killed on the order of Christoforos Amanatidis, whose activities are related to drugs. The informant stated that he was told this by one of the suspect’s relatives, who was intoxicated at the time. It is assumed that Ignatova was removed to hide her connection with the drug lord.