Cryptocurrency fraudster from Russia faces up to 20 years in prison

A cryptocurrency fraudster involved in money laundering has been extradited from the Netherlands to the United States — the Russian faces up to 20 years in prison if his guilt is proven.

As it became known, 29-year-old Denis Dubnikov, together with his accomplices, had been laundering funds obtained through cyberattacks since 2018. The fraudulent program was called Ryuk and was aimed at deleting any backups from victims' computers, so that users could get access to their data back, paying a ransom to the fraudsters, which could amount to tens of thousands of dollars.

According to the US Department of Justice website, the five-day trial is scheduled to begin on October 4. Dubnikov faces up to 20 years in prison, while information about his accomplices has not been disclosed.

Denis Dubnikov is not the only cryptocurrency fraudster from Russia whose fate is being decided by US law enforcement agencies. For example, the US authorities suspect Alexander Vinnik of running the BTC-e crypto exchange, through which about $ 9 billion was laundered. If found guilty, the suspect faces 50 years in prison. Vinnik himself, who was denied bail by a US court, continues to deny the charges against him. The fraudster was extradited to the United States from Greece.