Russian Vinnik, released from prison in the US, arrives in Moscow

^{Photo: picture-alliance/dpa/Y. Malinov}
Alexander Vinnik, a Russian citizen and founder of the BTC-e online exchange, who was released in a prisoner swap between Washington and Moscow, has arrived in Russia. This was reported by TASS and Interfax agencies on the night of Friday, February 14.

According to them, he was transported from Istanbul by a Russian plane. The Mitsubishi Challenger jet landed at Vnukovo International Airport. The flight from the United States was carried out in two stages - to Turkey and from Istanbul to Moscow.

Vinnik case

Alexander Vinnik was detained at the request of the United States in the summer of 2017 in northern Greece, where he was vacationing with his family. The man was charged with racketeering, identity theft and aiding and abetting drug trafficking. In 2024, he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering. He was convicted in the United States of laundering $4 billion (€3.8 billion) and sentenced to up to 50 years in prison. Vinnik was extradited to the United States in August 2022.

BTC-e was previously one of the world's top ten largest crypto platforms with a daily turnover of $66 million. The entire BTC-e network was deemed illegal by US authorities because it allowed trading from anonymous accounts. According to lawyers, Alexander Vinnik wanted to join a prisoner exchange agreement between Russia, the United States and other Western countries on August 1, 2024. Follow “Zamin” news on “Telegram”