Crypto Exchange Head Gets No More Jail in $700 Million Scam
- US says Bitzlato exchange operated as a safe haven on dark web
- Anatoly Legkodymov admitted he transmitted money for criminals
Breon Peace, US attorney with the eastern district of New York, speaks during a news conference regarding Bitzlato at the Department of Justice in Washington, DC, on Jan. 18, 2023.
Photographer: Al Drago/BloombergThe Russian founder of the Bitzlato cryptocurrency exchange was sentenced to the 18 months he’d already served behind bars in the US for operating an unlicensed money-transmitting business that masked the proceeds of illegal gambling and drug deals valued at more than $700 million.
Anatoly Legkodymov, who had been in federal custody since his January 2023 arrest, was sentenced to time served Thursday by US District Judge Eric Vitaliano in Brooklyn, New York. Legkodymov, who pleaded guilty in December, admitted knowing for years that Bitzlato was being used as a conduit for transactions tied to the dark web, including the notorious drug bazaar Hydra Market, which was shut down by authorities in 2022.