The world’s most wanted cryptocurrency fraudster Ruzha Ignatova killed

The mystery of the disappearance of the so-called crypto-queen Ruda Ignatova, who was included in the list of the 10 most wanted fugitives, has been solved. As journalists found out, the founder of the OneCoin pyramid scheme was killed in the fall of 2018.

Since 2017, the crypto queen has been reported missing and is on the federal wanted list. Ruja Ignatova founded the OneCoin pyramid scheme, which she and her offshore company OneCoin Ltd promoted under the guise of a cryptocurrency. Ignatova promised investors to make OneCoin the most popular virtual currency in the world, encouraging users to transfer their own savings to OneCoin investment accounts.

The information that the crypto queen is dead is confirmed by documents collected by law enforcement agencies during the investigation of the murder of a police officer. Currently, the secret data is in the hands of journalists who, among other things, have found evidence of Ignatova’s death. However, the deputy prosecutor of the Bulgarian capital, Hristo Krastev, said that the aforementioned documents cannot be considered evidence, as they were compiled on the basis of data provided by secret informants.

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.

Interestingly, at the end of January, information appeared that allegedly confirmed that the crypto queen was alive. As journalists reported at the time, the fraudster’s lawyers filed an official application for ownership of an apartment in London worth about 11 million pounds. According to journalist Jamie Bartlett, the documents sent by Ignatova’s lawyers «contain important clues to her recent whereabouts» and «evidence that Ruja is alive.»

Earlier, it was also assumed that the fraudster was hiding in Dubai. At the end of 2022, BBC journalists reported that Ignatova had allegedly bought a $ 20 million villa in the UAE, where she had probably been living for the past five years. The BBC also revealed that she had made a multimillion-dollar deal with the Emirates' royal sheikh, Saud bin Faisal Al Qasimi.

Is Ignatova dead for sure? It is impossible to say for sure at this time. In November 2022, law enforcement officials even suggested that Cryptoqueen could have changed her appearance and become a man to avoid arrest for her fraud.