https://darkwebinformer.com/cryptocurrency-mixer-operators-indicted-for-money-laundering/

A federal grand jury in the Northern District of Georgia has charged three Russian nationals—Roman Vitalyevich Ostapenko, Alexander Evgenievich Oleynik, and Anton Vyachlavovich Tarasov—for their roles in running cryptocurrency mixing services Blender.io and Sinbad.io. The charges follow a long investigation that included a major takedown of Sinbad.io’s infrastructure in late 2023. Ostapenko and Oleynik were arrested on December 1, 2024, but Tarasov is still on the run.

According to the indictment, the three operated mixers designed to help people hide where their cryptocurrency came from—making it easy for cybercriminals, including ransomware groups, to clean dirty money. Brent S. Wible from the Justice Department explained that these mixers allowed bad actors to profit from crimes that threaten public safety and national security. He credited international partnerships for making these arrests and the indictment possible.

U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan highlighted how these platforms were used worldwide to launder stolen funds, saying this case shows a commitment to shutting down tools that help cybercriminals hide their tracks. Sean Burke, Acting FBI Special Agent in Charge, echoed that sentiment, emphasizing how law enforcement stayed focused on finding and charging the people behind these platforms even after Sinbad.io was dismantled.

Blender.io and Sinbad.io were mixers that let users pay a fee to scramble their cryptocurrency transactions and make it harder to trace where the money came from. Blender.io operated from 2018 to 2022 and advertised itself as leaving no logs and requiring no personal details. When it shut down, Sinbad.io popped up a few months later, offering the same kind of service. Law enforcement shut down Sinbad.io in November 2023 as part of a global effort.

Both services had already been sanctioned by the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Blender.io was sanctioned in May 2022 because it was used by North Korea to launder stolen cryptocurrency and by multiple ransomware groups. Sinbad.io faced similar sanctions in November 2023 for its links to North Korean hackers and other cybercriminals.

The charges include conspiracy to commit money laundering and operating an unlicensed money transmitting business. If convicted, the defendants could face up to 20 years in prison for the money laundering charge, plus five years for each unlicensed transmitting count. Sentences will ultimately be decided by a judge based on federal guidelines.

The case involved close collaboration with law enforcement in the Netherlands, Finland, and Australia. The FBI led the investigation with significant help from international partners.