Alexander Vinnik alias „Mr. Bitcoin“ appeals his conviction

Alexander Vinnik alias „Mr. Bitcoin“ appeals his conviction

• Alexander Vinnik is appealing against his five-year prison sentence received on 7 December in Paris.
• He is accused of money laundering via the BTC-e encryption platform.

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On 7 December, the court in Paris sentenced Alexander Vinnik to five years in prison for money laundering via the BTC-e cryptomoney exchange.

Alexander Vinnik is appealing

According to a report by the Russian news agency Kommersant of 18 December, Frédéric Belot’s lawyer has appealed against the court’s judgement, arguing that the defendant was not involved in money laundering operations.

Citing the judgment accusing Vinnik of „money laundering as a member of an organised criminal group“, Belot stressed that no „criminal group“ consists of a single person. „The court did not mention a single name, even though he is supposed to belong to the group. He went on to say:

Vinnik was only a full-time trader and he did not participate, at least not consciously, in any money laundering operation.

International network

In the United States, Alexander Vinnik is accused of being the mastermind of an international money laundering system that allegedly processed more than $4 billion in capital flows through the BTC-e exchange. He is also said to have had connections with Semion Mogilevich, the godfather of the Russian mafia.
Alexander Vinnik

Known colloquially as „Mr Bitcoin“, Alexander Vinnik was arrested for the first time in Greece in July 2017 for allegedly participating in BTC-e operations. He allegedly operated the exchange until his arrest at the tourist resort of Halkidiki in northern Greece, which triggered a triple extradition battle between the US, France and Russia.