U.S. District Court in Seattle, Washington. (Courtesy photo) Defendants in $575M Crypto Fraud Freed After Fed's Star Witness Discredited
"Whenever you ask the court to do something that no judge in the district has done before, and only a handful of judges around the country have done, and when the magistrate judge has already disagreed with you, it presents a challenge, to say the least," said Andrey Spektor, a partner at Norton Rose Fulbright.
July 30, 2024 at 05:13 PM
4 minute read
What You Need to Know
- The defendants were accused of taking part in a $575 million cryptocurrency fraud and money laundering scheme.
- The FBI alleged that the defendants, while in custody, moved $95 million in cryptocurrency assets.
- A key witness, whose testimony led to the defendants' pretrial arrest, conceded that he was mistaken about the movement of the $95 million in cryptocurrency.
Two Am Law 100 partners scored a win after their clients, who, while in custody, were accused by the FBI of moving millions in cryptocurrency assets in a "surreptitious manner," walked out of prison Tuesday following an unusual ruling entered by a federal district court in Seattle.
The United States initially accused defendants Sergei Potapenko and Ivan Turõgin of taking part in a $575 million cryptocurrency fraud and money laundering scheme. Defense counsel Mark E. Bini, a partner at Reed Smith in its Miami and New York offices, and Andrey Spektor, a partner at Norton Rose Fulbright in its New York office, noted challenges in the case so far.
Mark E. Bini, a partner with Reed Smith. (Courtesy photo) NOT FOR REPRINT
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