Russian Man Faces Trial For $157 Million Worth of Bitcoin Fraud in France

A 41 years old Russian man arrested and charged with massive Bitcoin fraud in three countries will face trial today in Paris.

France accused Alexander Vinnik of extorting $157 million worth of Bitcoin as ransom from victims using ransomware software. He could face a 10-year jail term if found guilty. 

According to the report, Vinnik was allegedly one of the creators of the malware called “Locky” that was sent via email. Victims who downloaded the malware got their data locked and were asked to pay Bitcoin ransom to regain control. 

The report noted that Vinnik targeted french companies, litigation offices, and local councils between 2016 and 2018. And about 20 victims paid the ransom via $BTC-e, a defunct cryptocurrency exchange shut down by the U.S. government in 2017. 

The United States and Russia also want Vinnik for a similar offense. He was arrested in 2017 during his summer vacation in the northern part of Greece at the U.S. government’s request. The U.S. filed an indictment against Vinnik for laundering billions of dollars via the $BTC-e exchange. 

Following his arrest, Vinnik was held in Greece for two years as the U.S., Russia, and France battled for his extradition. Greece authorities later ruled that Vinnik’s case be tried first in France before the United States then finally in Russia. 

The accused continues to plead not guilty. Vinnik claims that he was nothing more than a technical consultant at $BTC-e and knew nothing about the illegal activities in question.

Upon his transfer to France in January, Vinnik refused to eat any food as he declared a hunger strike, asking that he is taken first to Russia, where he faces lesser charges than the U.S. and France.