Two Estonian nationals were extradited to Seattle to face charges that they operated a pair of schemes that brought in $575 million, including a fraud on investors that touted fake cryptocurrency mining capacity.
2 Estonians Charged In $575M Crypto : Initial Court Appearances
Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turōgin were arrested on November 20, 2022, in Tallinn, Estonia, according to prosecutors, and made their initial court appearances Thursday in Seattle federal court. The two defendants were remanded to custody after the hearing, with their arraignments and detention hearings set for June 10.
2 Estonians Charged In $575M Crypto : Ponzi Scheme Details
Potapenko and Turōgin operated a Ponzi scheme through a purported crypto service called HashCoins OU in Estonia beginning in 2013, according to an indictment. From 2015 to at least 2019, they sold customers contracts that entitled buyers to a percentage of the profits from a pooled remote crypto mining operation called HashFlare, the indictment reads. Through these contracts, Potapenko and Turōgin allegedly brought in about $550 million.
