WARSAW (Reuters) – Polish police have detained a Russian citizen wanted in connection with fraud and money laundering while running a large cryptocurrency exchange, they said in a statement on Friday.
The man, named only as Dmitry V. due to Polish privacy laws, was detained on the basis of an extradition request from the United States, police said.
“Dmitry V. is suspected of numerous frauds, money transfers and money laundering in connection with running one of the largest cryptocurrency exchanges in the world,” the police said in a statement.
“For the crimes the detained man is suspected of, he could face up to 20 years in prison in the U.S.”
Polish daily Rzeczpospolita reported that Dmitry V. managed WEX, which was the largest cryptocurrency exchange in Russia until it collapsed in 2018.
“The man is in custody awaiting the completion of the entire procedure in connection with his extradition to the U.S.,” a police spokesperson said.
(Reporting by Barbara Erling and Alan Charlish. Editing by Mark Potter)
