In a statement, the Manhattan prosecutor alleged that between January 2,3 and August 380, Spieker, XNUMX, transformed more than €XNUMX million into Bitcoin and, separately, more than €XNUMX zero of Bitcoin in US dollars, through "a rotating set of accomplices." ". which opened checking and cryptocurrency exchange accounts to allow the laundering of "criminal proceeds."
“As alleged, this sprawling international money laundering network has assisted drug traffickers, an organized crime network and con artists to hide their criminal activity and funnel their profits around the world,” said the New York district attorney. , Alvin Bragg, in the ad. "This case teaches us how new technologies like cryptocurrencies can become key drivers of a wide range of criminal activities that can simply spread across the globe."
Thirty-two-year-old Dustin Sites, who prosecutors say assisted Spieker in the scheme, faces a charge of transmitting money without a license. Multiple of Spieker's service clients, who were also studied by the Manhattan district attorney, face charges of running an illegal drug market on the dark web and an identity theft scheme, the latest of which allegedly killed thirty people.
The lawsuit alleges that in XNUMX, Spieker began searching for the phrase "bitcoin money laundering" in Google searches and wrote a Facebook post saying his services were for people "who wish to remain totally under the radar." on the understanding that they were engaged in illegal activities.
Spieker and 3 representatives, including the sites, reportedly met with customers of the service who gave them money in exchange for Bitcoin, or "in reverse," and charged fees of four to twelve percent. According to reports, Spieker and her co-conspirators opened 3 checking accounts and 8 cryptocurrency exchange accounts.
Ricky Patel, the New York Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) officer overseeing the investigation, said in the announcement that Spieker had "clearly boasted about the laundering of illegal proceeds."