Virtual Currency Money Launderer Sentenced to 20 years
Posted by: Timothy Weaver on 05/09/2016 10:42 AM
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Arthur Budovsky, 42, the founder of an online underworld bank, that allegedly laundered billions of dollars for criminals, was sentenced Friday to 20 years in prison.
Three days before his trial was to begin, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to commit money laundering.
In addition to the prison sentence, he was also commanded to pay a $500,000 fine by US District Judge Denise L. Cote.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell for the Justice Department's Criminal Division said in a statement: "The significant sentence handed down today shows that money laundering through the use of virtual currencies is still money laundering, and that online crime is still crime."
"Liberty Reserve founder Arthur Budovsky ran a digital currency empire built expressly to facilitate money laundering on a massive scale for criminals around the globe," US Attorney Preet Bharara for the Southern District of New York was quoted as saying.
The company was a "financial hub" for Ponzi scheme operators, credit card traffickers, identity thieves, hackers and other criminals, authorities said.
As part of his plea agreement, Budovsky admitted to laundering between $250 million and $550 million in criminal proceeds linked to US-based Liberty Reserve accounts.
Source: SecurityWeek
Three days before his trial was to begin, he pleaded guilty to one count of conspiring to commit money laundering.In addition to the prison sentence, he was also commanded to pay a $500,000 fine by US District Judge Denise L. Cote.
Assistant Attorney General Leslie R. Caldwell for the Justice Department's Criminal Division said in a statement: "The significant sentence handed down today shows that money laundering through the use of virtual currencies is still money laundering, and that online crime is still crime."
"Liberty Reserve founder Arthur Budovsky ran a digital currency empire built expressly to facilitate money laundering on a massive scale for criminals around the globe," US Attorney Preet Bharara for the Southern District of New York was quoted as saying.
The company was a "financial hub" for Ponzi scheme operators, credit card traffickers, identity thieves, hackers and other criminals, authorities said.
As part of his plea agreement, Budovsky admitted to laundering between $250 million and $550 million in criminal proceeds linked to US-based Liberty Reserve accounts.
Source: SecurityWeek
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